Uploaded May 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
This ROV dive will visually inspect and sample the ITR1 target area on the I1615 middle escarpment/intra-transform ridge flank of the Doldrums Transform Margin. The dive will follow up on the AUV survey of the same area, which mapped water depths of approximately 2,000-4,500 m and targeted escarpment morphology, lineaments, slope breaks, talus fields, basement highs, sediment pockets and sediment-basement contacts. The site is a priority because previous work indicates an altered and deformed gabbro-dolerite-ultramafic association, making it well suited for testing links between basement exposure, faulting, lithological variability, alteration, fluid circulation and possible habitat development. The ROV dive will ground-truth ship-based and AUV-derived bathymetry, backscatter, sub-bottom and environmental anomalies, and identify evidence for exposed
basement, volcanic or intrusive lithologies, fault-related deformation, alteration, mineralisation, seepage indicators, sediment accumulation, and potential biofilms and chemosynthetic communities. The dive will prioritise high-quality video documentation along at least three 20 minute long transects, as well as close-up imaging, rock, water and biological sampling, and push coring where sediment is
present.
FKt260517
More expedition information:
More ROV SuBastian information: schmidtocean.org/technology/robotic-platforms/4500-m-remotely-operated-vehicle-rov
_________
We livestream our ROV dives on YouTube and Twitch!
Join us on our oceanographic missions on our other social media platforms:
YouTube: youtube.com/SchmidtOcean
Twitch: twitch.tv/schmidtocean
Twitter: twitter.com/SchmidtOcean
Instagram: instagram.com/schmidtocean
Live data feeds from R/V Falkor (too):
🚢 Where's Falkor (too)? https://soi-vessel-tracker.web.app/
🌦️ How's the weather? windy.com/station/ship-zgoj7
Sign up for our newsletter here:
Newsletter link: https://mailchi.mp/schmidtocean.org/subscribe
_________
Schmidt Ocean Institute is a 501(c)(3) private non-profit operating foundation established to advance oceanographic research, discovery, and knowledge, and catalyze sharing of information about the oceans.
This ROV dive will visually inspect and sample the ITR1 target area on the I1615 middle escarpment/intra-transform ridge flank of the Doldrums Transform Margin. The dive will follow up on the AUV survey of the same area, which mapped water depths of approximately 2,000-4,500 m and targeted escarpment morphology, lineaments, slope breaks, talus fields, basement highs, sediment pockets and sediment-basement contacts. The site is a priority because previous work indicates an altered and deformed gabbro-dolerite-ultramafic association, making it well suited for testing links between basement exposure, faulting, lithological variability, alteration, fluid circulation and possible habitat development. The ROV dive will ground-truth ship-based and AUV-derived bathymetry, backscatter, sub-bottom and environmental anomalies, and identify evidence for exposed
basement, volcanic or intrusive lithologies, fault-related deformation, alteration, mineralisation, seepage indicators, sediment accumulation, and potential biofilms and chemosynthetic communities. The dive will prioritise high-quality video documentation along at least three 20 minute long transects, as well as close-up imaging, rock, water and biological sampling, and push coring where sediment is
present.
FKt260517
More expedition information:
More ROV SuBastian information: schmidtocean.org/technology/robotic-platforms/4500-m-remotely-operated-vehicle-rov
_________
We livestream our ROV dives on YouTube and Twitch!
Join us on our oceanographic missions on our other social media platforms:
YouTube: youtube.com/SchmidtOcean
Twitch: twitch.tv/schmidtocean
Twitter: twitter.com/SchmidtOcean
Instagram: instagram.com/schmidtocean
Live data feeds from R/V Falkor (too):
🚢 Where's Falkor (too)? https://soi-vessel-tracker.web.app/
🌦️ How's the weather? windy.com/station/ship-zgoj7
Sign up for our newsletter here:
Newsletter link: https://mailchi.mp/schmidtocean.org/subscribe
_________
Schmidt Ocean Institute is a 501(c)(3) private non-profit operating foundation established to advance oceanographic research, discovery, and knowledge, and catalyze sharing of information about the oceans.
