The HACON project and REV Ocean create the first detailed visual survey of the Aurora vent field, collecting more than 100 samples.
Longyearbyen, Norway. Oct 25, 2021.
At the Aurora hydrothermal vent field, 82.5N, and nearly 4km deep (13,000 ft), the HACON project successfully sampled rocks, fluids, sediments and fauna to improve understanding of the deep Arctic Ocean.
A multidisciplinary team of 28 scientists, including 6 experts from REV Ocean, has pushed the frontiers of knowledge for deep-sea researchers by sampling and filming one of Earth’s last remote and inaccessible environments deep below the permanent ice cover in the Arctic Ocean. Samples will help unravel the physical, geochemical and ecological processes that shape this unique area and allow researchers to assess if the fauna has evolved in isolation in the Arctic Ocean or if it is connected to other ocean basins.
The site was first detected 20 years ago and remained unexplored until expeditions in 2014 and 2019 revisited and confirmed the location with towed camera systems. The HACON 2021 cruise is the first time such a unique environment has been successfully explored and sampled beneath the permanent sea ice cover.
The samples taken from high-temperature fluids, chimney rock, sediments, and fauna will now be analysed at laboratories in the partner institutes to better understand the composition of the vents and the oasis of life and mineral formations around them. The teams have already expressed high confidence of new discoveries and intend to submit a succession of articles in peer-reviewed academic journals in the coming years.
“REV Ocean´s priority is to create an ecosystem of multidisciplinary scientific collaboration. The HACON cruise is a great example of how to enable partnerships and collaboration across different areas of study, collectively work on scientific discoveries, and advance our understanding of the ocean. The scientific alliances formed using the “Aurora” ROV is exactly what REV Ocean aims for. I am excited to see how we can use this valuable information to advance the protection of, and solutions for, this critical habitat in the deep-sea”, says Nina Jensen, CEO, REV Ocean.
Forty years after the first discovery of deep-sea hydrothermal vents, the HACON 2021 cruise has already added a wealth of visual material and physical samples of the different habitats on the seamount. The excellent collaborative atmosphere onboard facilitated the significant sharing of samples amongst the groups. These activities strengthened existing partnerships and established new ones amongst many of the teams from the different national and international institutions.
A key goal going forward is to use the results to work together on challenges and solutions related to Vulnerable Marine Ecosystems and Marine Protected Areas. This will result in new science provided to intergovernmental initiatives such as the UN conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction, the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the UN Decade for Ocean Science.
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ABOUT REV Ocean
REV Ocean is a not-for-profit company created with one overarching purpose and ambition – to make our ocean healthy again. Established in Norway in 2017, REV Ocean’s mission is to enable and inspire ocean solutions and combat the negative pressures currently affecting the ocean. The science strategy is focused on dealing with plastic pollution, climate change, and the environmental impacts of unsustainable fishing.
Background
The AMORE 2001 expedition located the Aurora vent field, In 2014, the Polarstern (PS86) 2014 cruise observed the first black smoker, and the specific locations of the black smoker positions were obtained during OFOBS dives throughout the HACON 2019 cruise.
Project Donor
The FRINATEK programme, funded by the Norwegian Research Council, provides the necessary funding framework from which to develop high risk-high gain projects that can significantly advance science. HACON project partners participated from CAGE/UiT (The Arctic University of Norway), The Norwegian Institute for Water Research (NIVA), The University of Bergen, University of Aveiro, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, NASA-JPL and Memorial University.
2021 Cruise Blog
www.revocean.org/HACON2021
For more information, please contact:
Lawrence Hislop
Communication Director
REV Ocean
Tel. +47 48500514 or email: lawrence.hislop@revocean.org