Underwater lakes are actually cold seeps!
What are they made up of?:
- High concentration of saline
- High concentrations of Methane
- Hydrogen Sulfide
- and other hydro-carbon rich fluids
Characteristics:
Since the density level of the cold seep is so much greater than that
of the surrounding ocean then there is a distinct separation between
the cold seep and the rest of the ocean. They are also a darker murky
color due to they toxic gases inside.
Life in and around Brine pools:
The only life currently know inside of brine pools are bacterias.
Around the brine pools there are three main life forms
Mussels:
They actually form a shore line for most brine pools.
They have a special bacteria that allows them to use
the methane that is seeping out from the sea floor and
turn it into an energy source.
Tube-worms:
The tube-worms are actually around 200 years
old and extract methane directly from the sea
floor as their energy source.
Chimareidae fish:
They mostly have rounded noses and long
tapering tails and they are what you call
extremophiles. Extremophiles can only live in
super intense areas around the world, for example
an environment that is really hot or really cold, with
no oxygen or sunlight. These fish are mostly found
at depths of one half a mile to two miles.
The cold seep in the Gulf of mexico was discovered in 1990.
(Brine Pool Video)
(Brine pool Video #2)
III. Biography on Investigator:
Although Samantha Joye was not the original discoverer of the cold seep in the Gulf of Mexico she has done a lot of research on it and is currently doing research on the BP oil spill. She is also currently a professor in Marine Sciences for the University of Georgia's Franklin College of Arts and Sciences. Her multiple expertise's are in the cycling of nutrients, metals, biogeochemistry, and many more. The Creative Research Award was given to her by the University of Georgia in 2008.
IV. IMPACT ON THE WORLD:
Life on other planets has always been a hot topic. Due to our earlier understanding that living things
could not survive in such harsh environments and that they need sunlight in order to survive we
thought it unthinkable for life to exist anywhere else than Earth. Now there are some researchers
that think there could be life on other planets. They back this up by stating that there IS life inside
of the cold seeps which survive of toxic gases with out sunlight! Ironically enough the gases that are found in the cold seeps (methane and hydrogen-sulfide) are the same types of gases found on the other planets.
V. JOURNAL ARTICLE REVIEW:
Although my article is not particularly on the cold seep in the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico it does discuss methane and how it oxidizes. Which pertains to my project because there is mostly methane found in cold seeps. According to the Department of Marine Biogeochemistry and Toxicology methane is oxidized through anaerobic conditions. Oxidation is the process in which a substance becomes an oxide (or combines with oxygen.) Anaerobic is anything that is without air. Which essentially did not make sense to me, how could methane become an oxide with a condition that has no oxygen? Then I read that it is facilitated with archaea and or bacteria (in our case bacteria.) Through reading the article I also understood that methane concentration increases with depth .
PANCOST, R. D., DAMSTE, J. S., LINT, S. D., MAAREL, M. J., & GOTTSCHAL, J. C. (2000, May 1). Biomarker Evidence for Widespread Anaerobic Methane Oxidation in Mediterranean Sediments by a Consortium of Methanogenic Archaea and Bacteria -- Pancost et al. 66 (3): 1126 -- Applied and Environmental Microbiology. Applied and Environmental Microbiology. Retrieved July 14, 2010, from http://aem.asm.org/cgi/reprint/
VI. REFERENCES:
- Chimareidae - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. (n.d.).Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved October 9, 2010, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chimaeridae
Kisar1. (n.d.). YouTube - Underwater Lake . YouTube - Broadcast Yourself. . Retrieved October 12, 2010, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KzUEr7uMnXU- NSF. (n.d.). Brine-Loving Microbes Reveal Secrets to Success in Chemically Extreme Environments. PhysOrg.com - Science News, Technology, Physics, Nanotechnology, Space Science, Earth Science, Medicine. Retrieved October 11, 2010, from http://www.physorg.com/news158259974.html
- Daily. (n.d.). Brine-Loving Microbes Reveal Secrets To Success In Chemically Extreme Environments. Science Daily: News & Articles in Science, Health, Environment & Technology. Retrieved October 1, 2010, from http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090406192437.htm
- Welcome!. (n.d.). Welcome to the Department of Marine Sciences at the University of Georgia. Retrieved October 10, 2010, from http://www.marsci.uga.edu/FacultyPages/Joye/index.htm
PANCOST, R. D., DAMSTE, J. S., LINT, S. D., MAAREL, M. J., & GOTTSCHAL, J. C. (2000, May 1). Biomarker Evidence for Widespread Anaerobic Methane Oxidation in Mediterranean Sediments by a Consortium of Methanogenic Archaea and Bacteria -- Pancost et al. 66 (3): 1126 -- Applied and Environmental Microbiology. Applied and Environmental Microbiology. Retrieved July 14, 2010, from http://aem.asm.org/cgi/reprint/
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