Sea explorers using a vehicle to examine large, unexplored areas discovered a sequence of holes in the sand deep in the waters along a volcanic ridge at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.
On July 23, when diving near the Portuguese mainland, north of the Azores, they noticed a dozen or so sets of holes on the ocean floor at a depth of 1.6 miles. Then, on Thursday, four further sightings were reported on the Azores Plateau, an undersea region where three tectonic plates converge. The distance between the holes and the expedition’s initial finding was around 300 miles, and they were about a mile deep.
The holes’ purpose is unknown to the scientists, but they have seen similar patterns previously and classify the holes as “lebensspuren,” German for “life traces,” which refer to imprints in sediment that may have been made by living organisms. What is making those imprints on the ocean floor, with the holes spaced at least four inches apart and the lines reaching between five and six feet, are the scientists asking themselves and the public in posts on Twitter and Facebook.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Ocean Exploration project posted on Twitter saying: “The origin of the holes has scientists stumped. The holes look human made, but the little piles of sediment around them suggest they were excavated by … something.”
Nearly two decades ago, just about 27 miles away from the location of the current expedition’s initial sighting, scientists spotted similar holes during an exploration, Emily Crum, a NOAA spokeswoman, said.
But the passage of time has not provided any clear answers, said Michael Vecchione, a NOAA deep-sea biologist who participated in the project and is also contributed in part of the latest expedition.
Dr. Vecchione said, “There is something important going on there and we don’t know what it is. This highlights the fact that there are still mysteries out there.”
On July 23, when diving near the Portuguese mainland, north of the Azores, they noticed a dozen or so sets of holes on the ocean floor at a depth of 1.6 miles. Then, on Thursday, four further sightings were reported on the Azores Plateau, an undersea region where three tectonic plates converge. The distance between the holes and the expedition’s initial finding was around 300 miles, and they were about a mile deep.
The holes’ purpose is unknown to the scientists, but they have seen similar patterns previously and classify the holes as “lebensspuren,” German for “life traces,” which refer to imprints in sediment that may have been made by living organisms. What is making those imprints on the ocean floor, with the holes spaced at least four inches apart and the lines reaching between five and six feet, are the scientists asking themselves and the public in posts on Twitter and Facebook.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Ocean Exploration project posted on Twitter saying: “The origin of the holes has scientists stumped. The holes look human made, but the little piles of sediment around them suggest they were excavated by … something.”
Nearly two decades ago, just about 27 miles away from the location of the current expedition’s initial sighting, scientists spotted similar holes during an exploration, Emily Crum, a NOAA spokeswoman, said.
But the passage of time has not provided any clear answers, said Michael Vecchione, a NOAA deep-sea biologist who participated in the project and is also contributed in part of the latest expedition.
Dr. Vecchione said, “There is something important going on there and we don’t know what it is. This highlights the fact that there are still mysteries out there.”
