On July 23, north of the Azores, sea explorers use a remotely operated vehicle to explore untouched areas of the ocean and found something surprising – a pattern of holes in the ocean floor sand.
About a week later, four more of these patterns were sighted on the Azore Plateau, an underwater terrain where the African, Caribbean, and Eurasian tectonic plates meet. The holes discovered this time were 300 miles away from the original discovery and about a mile deep.
Nearly two decades ago, 27 miles away from the location of the current expedition, scientists have encountered similar markings, although they are still unsure about what the holes are. The scientists consider them “lebensspuren,” German for “life traces,” since the holes look like they could be made by living organisms.
“The origin of the holes has scientists stumped,” said a post on Twitter from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Ocean Exploration project. “The holes look human made, but the little piles of sediment around them suggest they were excavated by … something.”
“There is something important going on there and we don’t know what it is,” said Dr. Michael Vecchione, a NOAA deep-sea biologist who participated in both expeditions where the holes were found “This highlights the fact that there are still mysteries out there.”
NOAA engaged the public with social media, dozens of guesses on why the holes existed. Comments theorized things such as Are the holes man-made? Could they be a sign from extraterrestrials? Are they tracks left by a submarine? Could they be the breathing holes of a “deep-sea creature that buries itself under the sand?”
According to Dr. Vecchione, the holes seen on the latest expedition appeared to have been pushed out from underneath.
The holes is just one of the many questions the scientists that are on the ocean expedition have. Experts with NOAA will seek more answers during three more expeditions that the call Voyage to the Ridge 2022, which began in May and will end in September.
During the expedition, they want to know what lives in underwater volcano ranges and what will happen when the geologic processes they depend on instead of the sun cease to work.
The explorers are paying close attention to deep-sea coral and sponge communities, which are “some of the most valuable marine ecosystems on Earth,” said Derek Sowers, the expedition coordinator.
“This has expanded our understanding of under what conditions life on other planets may occur,” Dr. Sowers said.
About a week later, four more of these patterns were sighted on the Azore Plateau, an underwater terrain where the African, Caribbean, and Eurasian tectonic plates meet. The holes discovered this time were 300 miles away from the original discovery and about a mile deep.
Nearly two decades ago, 27 miles away from the location of the current expedition, scientists have encountered similar markings, although they are still unsure about what the holes are. The scientists consider them “lebensspuren,” German for “life traces,” since the holes look like they could be made by living organisms.
“The origin of the holes has scientists stumped,” said a post on Twitter from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Ocean Exploration project. “The holes look human made, but the little piles of sediment around them suggest they were excavated by … something.”
“There is something important going on there and we don’t know what it is,” said Dr. Michael Vecchione, a NOAA deep-sea biologist who participated in both expeditions where the holes were found “This highlights the fact that there are still mysteries out there.”
NOAA engaged the public with social media, dozens of guesses on why the holes existed. Comments theorized things such as Are the holes man-made? Could they be a sign from extraterrestrials? Are they tracks left by a submarine? Could they be the breathing holes of a “deep-sea creature that buries itself under the sand?”
According to Dr. Vecchione, the holes seen on the latest expedition appeared to have been pushed out from underneath.
The holes is just one of the many questions the scientists that are on the ocean expedition have. Experts with NOAA will seek more answers during three more expeditions that the call Voyage to the Ridge 2022, which began in May and will end in September.
During the expedition, they want to know what lives in underwater volcano ranges and what will happen when the geologic processes they depend on instead of the sun cease to work.
The explorers are paying close attention to deep-sea coral and sponge communities, which are “some of the most valuable marine ecosystems on Earth,” said Derek Sowers, the expedition coordinator.
“This has expanded our understanding of under what conditions life on other planets may occur,” Dr. Sowers said.
