Scientists, UOG student to explore Marianas Trench

Limpets, shrimps, and crabs gather around a hydrothermal vent 3,500 meters deep. (SCHMIDT OCEAN INSTITUTE)

A team of scientists specializing in multiple branches of life sciences and a University of Guam student will be exploring the Marianas Trench on Dec. 29 with the help of remotely controlled vehicles.

Schmidt Ocean Institute communications manager Carlie Wiener, whose team recently came from exploring the largely unexplored Mariana Back-Arc, told Saipan Tribune that research vessel Falkor had nine scientists on board, along with a journalist and the remotely operated underwater vehicle team and crew.

The crew explored the back spine of the Marianas Trenchm known as the Mariana Back-Arc, an extremely deep area of the trench teeming with life at depths of about 13,000 feet.

“The next expedition leaves Guam on Dec. 29 and transits to Honolulu. During that time Falkor will be stopping at Johnston Atoll to conduct mapping of seamounts,” said Wiener in an email.

Joining the expedition is UOG student Andrew Kang, who is pursuing a master’s degree in biology with the UOG Marine Laboratory. Kang said the opportunity to be on Falkor will be beneficial to him in the long run.

“All of my past research dealt with coastal habitats, so I wanted to try out something different. The deep sea has always been of interest to me because there is so much of it that is still unexplored and unknown. I believe that this opportunity will be the perfect chance for me to get exposure to deep sea research,” said Kang in a message.

“It’s going to be a busy 19 days aboard the R/V Falkor but I’m ready to put forth my best effort. I’m still at the beginning of my research career, so I’m always striving to learn new things and improve what I already know,” he added.

Kang was born in Guam but finished his bachelor’s degree in biology at the University of Texas in Austin.

“I can’t wait to depart on the 29th; the longest I’ve been out at sea is a day so I’m really looking forward to just being out in the open blue,” said Kang.

The research vessel just returned from exploring the Marianas Back-Arc in early December. That area has been found to house hydrothermal vents with possibilities of recent lava flows. Once the researchers returned to the vent systems, they brought with them a remotely operated vehicle equipped with a high-definition camera, in which the researchers were able to take pictures and see species that may have just been discovered and are found nowhere else on the planet.

For pictures and more info, visit https://schmidtocean.org/cruise-log-post/going-deeper-mariana-back-arc/.