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Embarking on a three-week deep-sea research expedition requires a lot of preparation. For this expedition to Escanaba Trough, U.S. Geological Survey scientists and partners spend the first few days in port, building their laboratory space aboard the research vessel Thomas G. Thompson.
Almost everything the scientists need to collect samples and conduct their research must be transported onto the ship with them.
The science team and ship crew will spend the next three weeks at Escanaba Trough, 200 miles offshore, . They’ll collect sediment samples in gravity cores. They’ll measure water conductivity, temperature, and depth. Using a remotely-operated robot, they’ll collect photos, videos, and biological and geological samples from the seafloor along Escanaba Trough. They’ll also use an autonomous underwater vehicle to map seafloor features in Escanaba Trough and search for electric and magnetic traces of hydrothermal systems.
Their goal is to improve our understanding of hydrothermal systems as they change over time, as well as the geological and biological characteristics of these deep-sea environments.
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Video is Public Domain. Music: "Can't Forget You" by Xack, used with permission from Epidemic Sound
The familiar saying “good things come in small packages” holds especially true for deep-sea biological communities at hydrothermal vents, including those at Escanaba Trough, a seafloor spreading center located almost 200 miles off the northern California coast.
The familiar saying “good things come in small packages” holds especially true for deep-sea biological communities at hydrothermal vents, including those at Escanaba Trough, a seafloor spreading center located almost 200 miles off the northern California coast.
The familiar saying “good things come in small packages” holds especially true for deep-sea biological communities at hydrothermal vents, including those at Escanaba Trough, a seafloor spreading center located almost 200 miles off the northern California coast.
The familiar saying “good things come in small packages” holds especially true for deep-sea biological communities at hydrothermal vents, including those at Escanaba Trough, a seafloor spreading center located almost 200 miles off the northern California coast.
Seafloor features such as sulfide mounds and chimneys are prominent evidence of hydrothermal activity. These features, whether active or dormant, are just the tip of the iceberg, so to speak; much of the “plumbing” of hydrothermal systems exists beneath the seafloor surface.
Seafloor features such as sulfide mounds and chimneys are prominent evidence of hydrothermal activity. These features, whether active or dormant, are just the tip of the iceberg, so to speak; much of the “plumbing” of hydrothermal systems exists beneath the seafloor surface.
Seafloor features such as sulfide mounds and chimneys are prominent evidence of hydrothermal activity. These features, whether active or dormant, are just the tip of the iceberg, so to speak; much of the “plumbing” of hydrothermal systems exists beneath the seafloor surface.
Seafloor features such as sulfide mounds and chimneys are prominent evidence of hydrothermal activity. These features, whether active or dormant, are just the tip of the iceberg, so to speak; much of the “plumbing” of hydrothermal systems exists beneath the seafloor surface.
For scientists aboard the Escanaba Trough expedition, obtaining sediment cores or deep-sea biological and geological samples after a Jason dive is only the beginning.
For scientists aboard the Escanaba Trough expedition, obtaining sediment cores or deep-sea biological and geological samples after a Jason dive is only the beginning.
Critical to scientific operations aboard the Escanaba Trough expedition is the submersible robots Sentry and Jason. Owned and operated by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute (WHOI), these robots allow researchers to observe seafloor features and collect data from depths seldom visited by humans.
Critical to scientific operations aboard the Escanaba Trough expedition is the submersible robots Sentry and Jason. Owned and operated by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute (WHOI), these robots allow researchers to observe seafloor features and collect data from depths seldom visited by humans.
Critical to scientific operations aboard the Escanaba Trough expedition are the submersible robots Sentry and Jason. Owned and operated by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute (WHOI), these robots allow researchers to observe seafloor features and collect data from depths seldom visited by humans.
Critical to scientific operations aboard the Escanaba Trough expedition are the submersible robots Sentry and Jason. Owned and operated by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute (WHOI), these robots allow researchers to observe seafloor features and collect data from depths seldom visited by humans.
For scientists aboard the Escanaba Trough expedition, obtaining sediment cores or deep-sea biological and geological samples after a Jason dive is only the beginning.
For scientists aboard the Escanaba Trough expedition, obtaining sediment cores or deep-sea biological and geological samples after a Jason dive is only the beginning.
Embarking on a three-week deep-sea research expedition requires a lot of preparation. For this expedition to Escanaba Trough, U.S. Geological Survey scientists and partners spend the first few days in port, building their laboratory space aboard the research vessel Thomas G. Thompson.
Embarking on a three-week deep-sea research expedition requires a lot of preparation. For this expedition to Escanaba Trough, U.S. Geological Survey scientists and partners spend the first few days in port, building their laboratory space aboard the research vessel Thomas G. Thompson.
Embarking on a three-week deep-sea research expedition requires a lot of preparation. For this expedition to Escanaba Trough, U.S. Geological Survey scientists and partners spend the first few days in port, building their laboratory space aboard the research vessel Thomas G. Thompson.
Embarking on a three-week deep-sea research expedition requires a lot of preparation. For this expedition to Escanaba Trough, U.S. Geological Survey scientists and partners spend the first few days in port, building their laboratory space aboard the research vessel Thomas G. Thompson.
The familiar saying “good things come in small packages” holds especially true for deep-sea biological communities at hydrothermal vents, including those at Escanaba Trough, a seafloor spreading center located almost 200 miles off the northern California coast.
The familiar saying “good things come in small packages” holds especially true for deep-sea biological communities at hydrothermal vents, including those at Escanaba Trough, a seafloor spreading center located almost 200 miles off the northern California coast.
The familiar saying “good things come in small packages” holds especially true for deep-sea biological communities at hydrothermal vents, including those at Escanaba Trough, a seafloor spreading center located almost 200 miles off the northern California coast.
The familiar saying “good things come in small packages” holds especially true for deep-sea biological communities at hydrothermal vents, including those at Escanaba Trough, a seafloor spreading center located almost 200 miles off the northern California coast.
Seafloor features such as sulfide mounds and chimneys are prominent evidence of hydrothermal activity. These features, whether active or dormant, are just the tip of the iceberg, so to speak; much of the “plumbing” of hydrothermal systems exists beneath the seafloor surface.
Seafloor features such as sulfide mounds and chimneys are prominent evidence of hydrothermal activity. These features, whether active or dormant, are just the tip of the iceberg, so to speak; much of the “plumbing” of hydrothermal systems exists beneath the seafloor surface.
Seafloor features such as sulfide mounds and chimneys are prominent evidence of hydrothermal activity. These features, whether active or dormant, are just the tip of the iceberg, so to speak; much of the “plumbing” of hydrothermal systems exists beneath the seafloor surface.
Seafloor features such as sulfide mounds and chimneys are prominent evidence of hydrothermal activity. These features, whether active or dormant, are just the tip of the iceberg, so to speak; much of the “plumbing” of hydrothermal systems exists beneath the seafloor surface.
For scientists aboard the Escanaba Trough expedition, obtaining sediment cores or deep-sea biological and geological samples after a Jason dive is only the beginning.
For scientists aboard the Escanaba Trough expedition, obtaining sediment cores or deep-sea biological and geological samples after a Jason dive is only the beginning.
Critical to scientific operations aboard the Escanaba Trough expedition is the submersible robots Sentry and Jason. Owned and operated by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute (WHOI), these robots allow researchers to observe seafloor features and collect data from depths seldom visited by humans.
Critical to scientific operations aboard the Escanaba Trough expedition is the submersible robots Sentry and Jason. Owned and operated by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute (WHOI), these robots allow researchers to observe seafloor features and collect data from depths seldom visited by humans.
Critical to scientific operations aboard the Escanaba Trough expedition are the submersible robots Sentry and Jason. Owned and operated by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute (WHOI), these robots allow researchers to observe seafloor features and collect data from depths seldom visited by humans.
Critical to scientific operations aboard the Escanaba Trough expedition are the submersible robots Sentry and Jason. Owned and operated by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute (WHOI), these robots allow researchers to observe seafloor features and collect data from depths seldom visited by humans.
For scientists aboard the Escanaba Trough expedition, obtaining sediment cores or deep-sea biological and geological samples after a Jason dive is only the beginning.
For scientists aboard the Escanaba Trough expedition, obtaining sediment cores or deep-sea biological and geological samples after a Jason dive is only the beginning.
Embarking on a three-week deep-sea research expedition requires a lot of preparation. For this expedition to Escanaba Trough, U.S. Geological Survey scientists and partners spend the first few days in port, building their laboratory space aboard the research vessel Thomas G. Thompson.
Embarking on a three-week deep-sea research expedition requires a lot of preparation. For this expedition to Escanaba Trough, U.S. Geological Survey scientists and partners spend the first few days in port, building their laboratory space aboard the research vessel Thomas G. Thompson.
Embarking on a three-week deep-sea research expedition requires a lot of preparation. For this expedition to Escanaba Trough, U.S. Geological Survey scientists and partners spend the first few days in port, building their laboratory space aboard the research vessel Thomas G. Thompson.
Embarking on a three-week deep-sea research expedition requires a lot of preparation. For this expedition to Escanaba Trough, U.S. Geological Survey scientists and partners spend the first few days in port, building their laboratory space aboard the research vessel Thomas G. Thompson.