We often assume that we have a fairly solid understanding of how our world functions thanks to modern science, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth. When it comes to the oceans of the world, we don’t even understand what we don’t understand. Only around 10% of the world’s oceans have even been charted, much less thoroughly explored. Given that water makes up around two-thirds of the surface of our planet, there are a lot of possible mysteries.
The Charlie-Gibbs Fracture Zone, the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, and the Azores Plateau will be mapped during a five-month partnership between the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The mission of the Voyage to the Ridge 2022 is to deploy remotely operated vehicles to collect data on mainly undiscovered ecosystems and terrains up to six kilometers beneath the ocean’s surface. One discovery has caught the eye of scientists. At a depth of around 1.6 miles underneath the ocean’s surface, during the fourth dive of the trip, scientists discovered a number of holes in the seabed.
On July 25, 2022, NOAA posted a strange discovery to social media in the hopes that the general public’s knowledge and interest could help solve a strange underwater riddle. The picture displayed perforations are virtually straight and rectangular in appearance. They are spaced a few inches apart and repeat at frequent intervals. Despite some odd theories and speculations, no one seems to have a valid explanation as to what had caused these holes.
Similar holes were seen in 2004 but were also unexplained, according to NOAA. Scientists made several unsuccessful attempts to use instruments to peer inside the holes while diving.
We have no idea what might be down there or how it would respond to being prodded by an aquatic robot.
The holes appear to have been manufactured by humans based on their shape and regularity. The mission itself did not cause them and it is unknown what other human technology might be to blame. Additionally, each hole has a little pile of seafloor debris surrounding it, indicating they were dug out by something.
Scientists working on the trip speculate that these could be the work of a larger animal digging holes with a feeding appendage or, alternatively, a subsurface organism that is still unknown. Despite these theories, the holes’ exact nature is still unknown. All of these ideas are supported by equal amounts of evidence, yet some of them are more plausible than others, no matter how entertaining to think about they might be.
The gaps in our knowledge of the natural world are being filled in by expeditions like Voyage to the Ridge 2022, yet these bizarre deep-sea holes serve as a reminder that every new discovery raises more questions. They are gaps in our understanding as well as in the seafloor.
Links: https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/strange-alien-holes-discovered-on-the-ocean-floor/ar-AA109zPk
https://www.greenmatters.com/news/ocean-floor-holes
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/28/science/holes-ocean-floor-mystery.html
The Charlie-Gibbs Fracture Zone, the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, and the Azores Plateau will be mapped during a five-month partnership between the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The mission of the Voyage to the Ridge 2022 is to deploy remotely operated vehicles to collect data on mainly undiscovered ecosystems and terrains up to six kilometers beneath the ocean’s surface. One discovery has caught the eye of scientists. At a depth of around 1.6 miles underneath the ocean’s surface, during the fourth dive of the trip, scientists discovered a number of holes in the seabed.
On July 25, 2022, NOAA posted a strange discovery to social media in the hopes that the general public’s knowledge and interest could help solve a strange underwater riddle. The picture displayed perforations are virtually straight and rectangular in appearance. They are spaced a few inches apart and repeat at frequent intervals. Despite some odd theories and speculations, no one seems to have a valid explanation as to what had caused these holes.
Similar holes were seen in 2004 but were also unexplained, according to NOAA. Scientists made several unsuccessful attempts to use instruments to peer inside the holes while diving.
We have no idea what might be down there or how it would respond to being prodded by an aquatic robot.
The holes appear to have been manufactured by humans based on their shape and regularity. The mission itself did not cause them and it is unknown what other human technology might be to blame. Additionally, each hole has a little pile of seafloor debris surrounding it, indicating they were dug out by something.
Scientists working on the trip speculate that these could be the work of a larger animal digging holes with a feeding appendage or, alternatively, a subsurface organism that is still unknown. Despite these theories, the holes’ exact nature is still unknown. All of these ideas are supported by equal amounts of evidence, yet some of them are more plausible than others, no matter how entertaining to think about they might be.
The gaps in our knowledge of the natural world are being filled in by expeditions like Voyage to the Ridge 2022, yet these bizarre deep-sea holes serve as a reminder that every new discovery raises more questions. They are gaps in our understanding as well as in the seafloor.
Links: https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/strange-alien-holes-discovered-on-the-ocean-floor/ar-AA109zPk
https://www.greenmatters.com/news/ocean-floor-holes
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/28/science/holes-ocean-floor-mystery.html
