Uploaded January 2025 | Updated September 2026, 1 hour ago
In 1977, scientists exploring an oceanic spreading ridge near the Galápagos Islands made a stunning discovery: openings in the Pacific Ocean seafloor with warm, chemical-rich fluids flowing out. Later trips revealed previously unknown organisms and entire ecosystems around the vents, thriving in the absence of sunlight–a phenomenon that scientists didn’t think was possible. These discoveries fundamentally changed our understanding of life on Earth.
Learn more at https://www.whoi.edu/know-your-ocean/ocean-topics/how-the-ocean-works/seafloor-below/hydrothermal-vents/
© Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
In 1977, scientists exploring an oceanic spreading ridge near the Galápagos Islands made a stunning discovery: openings in the Pacific Ocean seafloor with warm, chemical-rich fluids flowing out. Later trips revealed previously unknown organisms and entire ecosystems around the vents, thriving in the absence of sunlight–a phenomenon that scientists didn’t think was possible. These discoveries fundamentally changed our understanding of life on Earth.
Learn more at https://www.whoi.edu/know-your-ocean/ocean-topics/how-the-ocean-works/seafloor-below/hydrothermal-vents/
© Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
