Uploaded July 2019 | Updated September 2026, 5 hours ago
While exploring Ahyi Seamount during Dive 5 of the leg, we encountered a range of sessile organisms that made scientists exclaim, 'what is that?!' These included a benthic ctenophore, a rare anemone (possibly in the genus Alicia), and a sea slug (or nudibranch). A frequent topic among the science team during the dive was if these organisms had recently taken up residence in the area or if they had resided in this area prior to a documented eruption of the seamount in 2014.
Video courtesy of the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, 2016 Deepwater Exploration of the Marianas.
oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/okeanos/explorations/ex1605/dailyupdates/media/video/0622-whatisthat/0622-whatisthat.html
While exploring Ahyi Seamount during Dive 5 of the leg, we encountered a range of sessile organisms that made scientists exclaim, 'what is that?!' These included a benthic ctenophore, a rare anemone (possibly in the genus Alicia), and a sea slug (or nudibranch). A frequent topic among the science team during the dive was if these organisms had recently taken up residence in the area or if they had resided in this area prior to a documented eruption of the seamount in 2014.
Video courtesy of the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, 2016 Deepwater Exploration of the Marianas.
oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/okeanos/explorations/ex1605/dailyupdates/media/video/0622-whatisthat/0622-whatisthat.html
