Hydrothermal vents are one of the most extreme environments on Earth, hosting diverse microbial communities that thrive in complete darkness, in the absence of oxygen, and supported by gases issuing from underwater volcanoes. This video, produced by VISIONS’24 School of Oceanography student Juliet Weiner, explores this largely hidden world at the summit of Axial Seamount. It highlights the importance of research into microbes (and viruses) in the deep and showcases the work by Dr. Rika Anderson (Carleton College) who was on the 2024 Regional Cabled Array expedition utilizing the ROV Jason and a novel sampling system at the vents to better understand deep-sea biodiversity and evolution. Credit: J. Weiner, R. Anderson, D. Kelley-VISIONS’24, University of Washington, Carleton College. UW/NSF-OOI/WHOI, V24.
Microbes of the Deep
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