Schmidt Ocean Institute

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We are excited to share that, due to a change in plans for our Nazca Ridge expedition in Peruvian waters, Research Vessel Falkor (too) will be going to the unexplored and harder-to-reach high seas portion of the Nazca Ridge, where it meets the Salas y Gómez Ridge. We are delighted to welcome some of the scientists from other universities who have joined previous expeditions back on board, and we’ll be working in partnership with the University of New Hampshire Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping Alumni and Ocean Census. The co-chief scientists will be Schmidt Ocean Institute Marine Technician Tomer Ketter and Executive Director Dr. Jyotika Virmani. The crew of Falkor (too) and the international science team will collect comprehensive seafloor mapping data and, using ROV SuBastian, characterize the biodiversity of life along several seamounts at the Nazca and Salas y Gómez junction. The team will also integrate and test several new pieces of equipment on the ROV. Dotted by unmapped and unexplored seafloor features, this is a unique global biodiversity hotspot roughly 800 nautical miles west of the Chilean coast. The expedition expands upon work in the region to establish a baseline of scientific data to support global efforts to protect 30 percent of the world’s Ocean by 2030. Stay tuned for #NazcaHighSeas Divestream announcement updates! https://lnkd.in/eUrhWZGn

One fish, two fish, deep-sea batfish! Ogcocephalidae is a family of anglerfish. According to inaturalist.org they use their fins to walk along the seafloor, and their irregular shape makes them awkward swimmers. They attract dinner with a chemical lure that lasts for approximately two minutes and draws crustaceans and small fish right to them. These benthic buddies were spotted during the #SalasyGomezRidge expedition along the northern flank of Motu Motiro Hiva, an uninhabited island that serves as a nesting ground for some seabirds and one of the only two islands along the Salas y Gómez Ridge.

Today’s benthic ballet features what looks like a deep-sea daddy long-legs, more accurately described as a munnopsid isopod. According to our pals at MBARI, these gangly crustaceans have been spotted walking along the abyssal plain and are well-suited for seafloor living. They’re also equipped with feathery legs and paddles for swimming. This delicate dancer was spotted during the #AtacamaTrenchAncients expedition off the coast of Chile. An international team was working to characterize the microbial and macrofaunal communities in the surrounding areas of the Atacama Trench.

A meditation — guided by squid. Feel the cool water move across your body. You’re a squid, and you take in oxygen via simple diffusion across your skin and uptake at your gills. Drift with the current. Relax and let the water take you on a journey. Just because you can move by jet propulsion doesn’t mean you have to. Resist the urge to fill your squid mantle with water and then eject it through your funnel-like siphon. While this ability gives you great speed, you don’t need to hurry right now. Enjoy the darkness. In the depths of the Ocean, no sunlight will disrupt your peaceful meditation. Humans can’t survive here, but as a squid, your squishy body makes you well-suited to withstand the pressure of the abyssal zone. When you’re ready, gently wiggle your cephalopod fins, returning to awareness. Everyday life is waiting for you; don't just jump back into it — embrace your inner squid and savor the quietness for a little longer.

Local news organizations are essential to our communities, providing not only a sense of identity and connection but also a spotlight on local challenges like land rights, voting abuses, the impact of extractive industries and air and water quality. Eric and I believe deeply in investing in NPR’s work to strengthen our democracy, protect human rights, expose wrongs and uplift voices that deserve to be heard. https://lnkd.in/grVS7U5K

They may not resemble starfish, but these echinoderms have the same five-rayed symmetry as their starfish relatives. They have five rows of tube feet that extend from their mouth and run along their cucumber-shaped bodies. Speaking of their mouths, our buddies over at Monterey Bay Aquarium gleefully point out that these holothurians “have a mouth and they have a butt, and they don’t breathe out of their mouths.” And to deter predators, some also expel their guts out of their derriere (some eject their viscera, while others shoot some very sticky organs called Cuvierian tubules). Despite their rather alarming respiratory and defense systems, these animals have an important job to do in the deep Ocean. They consume organic matter and excrete clean sand as they move along the seafloor. This process, called bioturbation, helps make previously buried nutrients available for their neighbors. Think of them as essential members of the recycling team! Scientists observed this sea cucumber during the #SalasyGomezRidge expedition off the coast of Chile.

We're excited to attend this thought-provoking webinar in the MTS Women Leadership in Marine Science and Technology Webinar Series: "How can we support researcher parents and caregivers?" When: Wednesday, July 10, 2024 | 2:00 - 3:00 PM EDT Panelists: Dr. Laura Carter | University of Leeds, Dr. Laura J. Pallett | University College London, Dr. Laura Wolz | The University of Manchester, and Leonard Pace | Schmidt Ocean Institute Register today! https://lnkd.in/eCWQfyBk

Artist-at-Sea Christine Lee joined the 2019 Deep Coral Diversity at Emperor Seamount Chain Expedition. Some of the Ocean’s most iconic and alien-looking species are found in the bathyal zone, 800 to 3500 meters deep. Also known as the midnight zone, this understudied area in the Ocean hosts a great amount of deep-sea coral diversity. During the expedition, Christine explored the pattern connections between the range of science data gathered during seafloor mapping to create a series of two-dimensional pieces and sculptural experiments. #SciArtFriday #SciArt #ArtistAtSea #deepcoraldiversity #EmperorSeamounts

While folks in the U.S. are looking to the sky with a sense of wonder, we're thinking about the deep Ocean! This iridogorgia coral's unique spiral pattern looks a little like fireworks & provides an efficient means of food capture in swiftly moving currents. Spotted during the #PhoenixIslandsCorals expedition in 2021.