A new collection robot has been developed by Harvard University’s Wyss Institute, John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), and Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study. The new robot is a solution to collecting “squishy” and delicate deep sea organisms. The 3-D printed polyhedron folds into a hollow dodecahedron and is known as a Rotary Actuated Dodecahedron (RAD).
In a study published this month, scientists from MBARI (Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute) investigated the larger picture of the deep sea food chain. The study is a result of nearly thirty years of cameras being deployed for observations off the central California coast, sometimes at a depth of up to two-and a half miles deep. The ROVs revealed 242 unique feeding relationships comprised of 84 different predators and 82 different prey. Most notably, scientists have realized what an important food role jellies play in the larger food chain.
The Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) has launched their Deep-Sea Guide. This gives access to the Institute’s database of 25 years worth of deep-sea ROV observations, which has not previously been open to the public. The database and its Video Annotation and Reference System software can be used to search for creatures via common or taxonomic names as well as data about occurrence, images of creatures and references.
Scientists with the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) recently discovered the deepest known hydrothermal vents in the Pacific Ocean during expeditions in the Gulf of California. The location of the vents are in a portion of the Gulf of California known as the Pescadero Basin, approximately one hundred miles east of La Paz. At 3,800 meters below the surface, this newly discovered field of hydrothermal vents are the deepest known in the Pacific Ocean.
The MBARI (Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute) ROV Doc Ricketts recently observed a deep sea anglerfish at 600 meters deep during an expedition this month. The scientists were able to capture video footage of the approximately 9 cm long female Melanocetus. There are more than 200 different species of anglerfish and this is believed to be the first ever video footage of a Black Seadevil alive and at depth.