Scientists have been left gobsmacked after finding thousands of sea creatures flourishing almost six miles underwater in the ocean’s deepest point.
The astounding discovery was made when researchers came across communities of tube worms and clams almost 25 per cent deeper than such animals have ever been recorded.
The unique marine life was uncovered in a series of dives carried out by a crewed submersible in the depths of the Kuril–Kamchatka and Aleutian trenches located in the northwest Pacific.
While most creatures sustain themselves on organic matter, the researchers were shocked to find out these creatures get their energy from chemicals, a process called chemosynthesis.
Mengran Du, one of the authors of the research, said: “What makes our discovery ground-breaking is not just its greater depth – it’s the astonishing abundance and diversity of chemosynthetic life we observed.
“Unlike isolated pockets of organisms, this community thrives like a vibrant oasis in the vast desert of the deep sea.”
Although sea creatures have been found in even deeper water at depths of almost 36,000 feet in the Mariana Trench, these were the first chemical consumers to be found at this level.
The animals sustain themselves with fluids containing hydrogen sulfide and methane seeping from the ocean floor.
INSTITUTE OF DEEP-SEA SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING, CAS
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The unique marine life was uncovered in a series of dives carried out by a crewed submersible in the depths of the Kuril–Kamchatka and Aleutian trenches
The submersible, named the Fendouzhe, dived down to the hadal zone to carry out the fresh research.
The hadal zone is where one of the tectonic plates that constitute the planet’s crust slides under another plate nearby, in what is known as subduction.
Study co-author, Xiaotong Peng, said: “The ocean environment down there is characterized by cold, total darkness and active tectonic activities.”
Peng added that the environment in which the discovery was made was “the deepest and the most extensive chemosynthetic communities known” anywhere on Earth.
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INSTITUTE OF DEEP-SEA SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING, CAS
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The newly discovered communities of marine life were largely made up of right, white and grey coloured tube worms and white clams (pictured)
The newly discovered communities of marine life were largely made up of right, white and grey coloured tube worms and white clams that measured up to nine inches in length.
Du noted that some of the creatures observed appeared to be a new species, previously unknown to science.
She said: “Even though living in the harshest environment, these life forms found their way in surviving and thriving.
“Diving in the submersible was an extraordinary experience – like traveling through time.”
The Kuril–Kamchatka Trench runs around 1,800 miles and is located off the coastline of the Kamchatka Peninsula.
The Aleutian Trench is roughly 2,100 miles long and is found off the southern coast of Alaska and the Aleutian Islands.
During the research, some organic matter-consuming creatures, such as spoon worms and sea cucumbers were found living amongst the newly discovered chemical eaters.
These deep-dwelling animals survive by eating organic matter found in the dark depths and dead marine life that floats down from the ocean above.
The study’s findings highlighted how life can be found even in some of the world’s most extreme conditions – and how creatures may live in oceans on other planets too.
Peng said: “These findings extend the depth limit of chemosynthetic communities on Earth.
“Future works should focus on how these creatures adapt to such an extreme depth.
“We suggest that similar chemosynthetic communities may also exist in extraterrestrial oceans, as chemical species like methane and hydrogen are common there.”
