This small chimney on the east side of the hydrothermal field is fairly representative. It is 12 m tall and has multiple small pinnacles with a few horizontal ledges that stick out from the pinnacles. We explored this chimney in 2003 when we captured these images. We will revisit it during this project.
Hydrothermal vents found inside a crater on the top of Giggenbach volcano are releasing streams of bubbles because they are hot enough to be at the boiling point for seawater (205 degrees C, 400 F) at this depth (165 meters, 540 feet). This is a rarely observed phenomenon, and these hydrothermal vents have the highest total gas content ever sampled, except for Eifuku volcano in the Marianas arc. Video courtesy of the New Zealand American Submarine Ring of Fire 2005 expedition. Download video (mp4, 5.9 MB).
Related Links
New Zealand American Submarine Ring of Fire 2005
New Zealand American Submarine Ring of Fire 2005: April 18 Log
