The most northerly submarine hydrothermal vents – or black smokers – have been discovered on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, well inside the Arctic Circle, following more than a decade of research by scientists from the universities of Washington, USA, and Bergen in Norway.

The cluster of five submarine vents were discovered using a remotely operated vehicle during an expedition to investigate seafloor spreading along the northern reaches of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge.

The discovery came as a surprise to the researchers, led by geologist Rolf Pedersen from the University of Bergen, as seafloor spreading the process that creates the correct conditions for vents to form – happens much more slowly in higher latitudes. In the area understudy, tectonic movement is drawing the Eurasian and North American plates apart at a rate of around 15 millimetres a year; further south, it can be up to eight times faster, with hydrothermal activity consequently more common.

‘We hadn’t expected a lot of active venting on ultra-slow spreading ridges,’ said oceanographer Marvin Lilley from the University of Washington.

‘It is an important discovery because it provides a new natural laboratory where hydrothermal processes and life in extreme environments can be studied,’ said Pedersen. ‘It is a significant discovery for the scientific community, because by focusing on the deep marine environment and on the global spreading ridge system, we have found an important missing piece of the puzzle.’

October 2008