Category: News and Notes

Interesting news and activities

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See-thru deep ocean fish

MBARI’s ROV Ventana spotted this very rare barreleye fish (Macropinna microstoma) last week, with a see-through head!

MBARI’s ROV was cruising at a depth of ~2,132 feet (650 meters) in the Monterey Submarine Canyon, one of the deepest submarine canyons on the Pacific coast.

The barreleye has two eyes that glow bright green in the ROV lights and a clear, fluid-filled shield that covers its head. The eyes are incredibly light-sensitive and can be oriented straight up, towards the top of the fish’s head, or straight ahead, according to MBARI. Two dark-colored capsules sit in front of the fish’s eyes and contain the organs the animal uses to smell.

Full articles at: MBARI and Live Science 09dec21

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Bigfin Squid spotted during ROV mapping

A rare creature to see, a bigfin squid was spotted about 2 weeks ago during Dive 10 of the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA)’s Windows to the Deep 2021 ROV and mapping expedition off the West Florida Escarpment in the Gulf of Mexico. (Video below)

Bigfin squid are widely distributed throughout the world’s deep ocean, and they can live deeper than any other known squid. The current depth record for a bigfin squid is 4,735 meters (3 miles) and the largest known bigfin squid was 6.4 meters (21 feet) long with arms and tentacles 6.1 meters (20 feet) long. Imagine arms 20 times the length of your body!

Full article at: Oceanexplorer.noaa.gov 12nov21

https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/okeanos/explorations/ex2107/features/bigfin-squid/media/dive10-bigfin-squid-640×360.mp4?640

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ROV recovering ROVs

Stuff happens… anywhere and anytime. For Ocean Exploration Trust, “it” happened down at ~2,200m (7,200ft) when the tether connecting ROVs Hercules and Argus separated from their support vessel, leaving the vehicles stranded on the ocean floor in the Endeavor Hydrothermal Field.

Luckily, both ROVs were successfully recovered with the help of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI)’s ROV Jason. Hercules and Argus are now exploring ancient underwater volcanoes in Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument (PMNM) off the northern islands of Hawaii.

Full article at: Newburyportnews.com 15nov21

You can watch their current expedition live at https://nautiluslive.org/