China-led Pacific Ocean dive reveals deep-sea secrets in Kermadec Trench
Fascinating marine animals spotted by Chinese and New Zealand researchers thousands of metres below the surface
Expedition in China-made submersible perhaps most efficient scientific sampling in depths below 6,000 metres, New Zealand marine ecologist says
Holly Chik
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Published: 3:00pm, 25 Feb, 2023
An upside-down anglerfish, as discovered by the team in the South Pacific Ocean. Photo: IDSSE
A red anglerfish swimming upside down, anemones with extra-long stalks, and plain, no-spikes sea cucumbers crawling along the sea floor with not a care in the deep-ocean world.
These are but some of the rarely seen deep-sea creatures living thousands of metres down in the ocean where the sun does not reach and food is scarce while withstanding water pressure that could be up to a thousand times greater than at the surface.
They were among the fascinating marine animals spotted by a team of researchers from China and New Zealand as they dived to one of the deepest places on Earth the Kermadec Trench in the South Pacific Ocean.
Its perhaps the most efficient scientific sampling regime in the hadal depths [below 6,000 metres] that exists at the moment, said David Bowden, a marine ecologist from New Zealands National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research who was part of the expedition.
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More:
https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3211481/china-led-pacific-ocean-dive-reveals-never-seen-secrets-deep-down-kermadec-trench
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A run-of-the-mill, ordinary, deep ocean anglerfish.