An Off-Axis Hydrothermal Vent Field Near the Mid-Atlantic Ridge at 30° N

An off-axis hydrothermal vent field near the Mid-Atlantic Ridge at 30° N

Evidence is growing that hydrothermal venting occurs not only along mid-ocean ridges but also on old regions of the oceanic crust away from spreading centres. Here we report the discovery of an extensive hydrothermal field at 30° N near the eastern intersection of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and the Atlantis fracture zone. The vent field—named ‘Lost City’—is distinctly different from all other known sea-floor hydrothermal fields in that it is located…

'Lost City' Deep Beneath The Ocean Is Unlike Anything We've Seen Before on Earth

Close to the summit of an underwater mountain west of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, a jagged landscape of towers rises from the gloom.Their creamy carbonate walls and columns appear ghostly blue in the light of a remotely operated vehicle sent to explore. They range in height from tiny stacks the size of toadstools to a grand monolith standing 60 meters (nearly 200 feet) tall. This is the Lost City.A remotely operated vehicle shines a light on the…

Near the top of a subaquatic mountain, in the west of the Atlantic Dorsala, a landscape with towers rises in the dark.The parts and columns of their catalysts, of carbon, appear in a fantastic...