Leslie sits between the rock sample boxes
of the 2.5-ton Deep Discoverer ROV on
board the NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer.
The ROV Deep Discoverer during recovery.
A gorgeous
100-meter
vertical wall of
compacted mud
was the substrate
for hundreds
of brisingid
seastars, as well as
anemones, corals,
and sponges.
(Depth: 1,800
meters, 80 miles
off the North
Carolina/Virginia
border.)
Is that a sea cucumber outhouse?
These are some of the countless questions that we asked while
viewing live high-definition video of the unexplored deep off
the southeast U.S. coast in June 2018. I was so very fortunate
to be the geology lead aboard the NOAA Ship Okeanos
Explorer on its 22-day Windows to the Deep 2018 expedition,
exploring South Carolina’s deepwater backyard. Using the
remotely operated vehicle (ROV) Deep Discoverer we visited
17 sites—each of which was unique in its seabed geology and
benthic communities. Dives ranged in depth from 350 to
3,300 meters and were located from the area beneath the Gulf
Stream (off northern Florida to Cape Hatteras, N.C.) to nearly
200 miles off our coast on enormous areas known as the Blake
Plateau and Blake Ridge. Our continental margin
14
is unique because of these large-scale features that lie beyond
our continental shelf, yet only a small fraction of it has been
mapped in high resolution or explored.
The expedition’s mission was to map and study a variety of
deep-water habitats, with a primary objective to locate and
characterize deep coral and sponge communities. During
every minute of every dive, thousands of people from around
the globe followed the live stream. The live telepresence
allowed more than 150 scientists to contribute their
knowledge and ideas via our chatroom, and several called
in to share their expertise. Social media engaged thousands
and generated many comments and questions.
Naturally Kiawah