Follow along as participants in the cruise provide updates and reflections on their experiences, the science, the technology, and other elements of the expedition.
October 13, 2020 | By Dr. Kerry McPhail
Microbial communities on the seafloor are epicenters of microbial interaction, and based on what we learned from exploring nature on land, may hold the potential for great discoveries. What help can methane seeps provide for diseases of today and tomorrow?
Read moreSeptember 30, 2020 | By Dr. Andrew Thurber
We often think of exploring as diving into the abyss to find new species. And while we do find new species, exploration is really one of the first and most critical components of the scientific method: observation.
Read moreSeptember 29, 2020 | By Lila Ardor Bellucci
Even across similar ocean depths and latitudes, individual seep sites can vary dramatically in the way they look and function and in the animals and microbes that live there. One reason is because seeps can be thought of as having lifetimes and can look very different at different phases in their Iives. During two dives while exploring the Cascadia Margin, we were lucky to find seeps in two opposite ends of these phases, often called “successional stages.”
Read moreSeptember 28, 2020 | By Susie Cummings
How would you conduct a census for bacteria? As scientists, we want to learn about the diversity of different life on Earth – and that includes microscopic life as well! But how do you get information about things so small they can’t be seen with the naked eye?
Read moreSeptember 27, 2020 | By Dr. Andrew Thurber
The ocean has been an economic resource and critical component of society throughout human history, and yet it is also an area that faces increased use and economic growth. The decision to use a resource involves a combination of technology, economics, and societal will. Seeps are no different, and exploration and discovery of them will inform management decisions as we decide the future economy of the deep ocean.
Read moreSeptember 26, 2020 | By Dr. Andrew Thurber
Methane seeps are areas where methane leaks from vast reservoirs deep in the ocean mud. If that leak is big enough, it provides an energy source for microbes who can capture it, use it, and pass it on to other organisms.
Read moreSeptember 25, 2020 | By Lila Ardor Bellucci
A mere five minutes after gawking at huge meter-wide pink bubblegum corals, the lights of remotely operated vehicle Hercules began glinting off bright white clam shells and knotty bushes of tube worms. We knew this could only mean one thing... methane seeps.
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