A huge ancient crater with a mud volcano was discovered at the bottom of the Barents Sea

Miscellaneous / by admin / May 16, 2023

click fraud protection

It continues to seethe at a depth of 400 meters.

Ocean Explorers in the Arctic discovered an underwater volcano spewing mud and methane. It is located in another much larger crater, which was probably formed after a catastrophic ejection at the end of the last ice age.

The researchers noticed unusual activity about 130 km south of Norway's Bear Island, or Bjørnøya, in the Barents Sea. The volcano, which the team named the Borealis Mud Volcano, was the second of its kind to be discovered in Norwegian waters.

Image: UiT The Arctic University of Norway

Exploring the seafloor and discovering new sources of methane is like looking for hidden treasure. Every time we go down to the seabed, we get the feeling that we have just begun to understand the vast and incredible variety of such systems.

Stefan Buenz

professor at the Arctic University of Norway and one of the leaders of the AKMA organization, which made the discovery

The Borealis mud volcano has a diameter of approximately 7 meters and a height of approximately 2.5 meters. On May 7, scientists used a remote-controlled deep-sea submersible to capture footage of a small mountain constantly emitting a cloudy liquid rich in methane.

instagram viewer

The volcano is located in the center of another crater, which is 300 meters wide and 25 meters deep. And all this formation is located at a depth of 400 meters below the surface of the sea. Scientists believe it was created by a sudden and massive methane eruption after the last ice age, 18,000 years ago.

Watching an underwater eruption in real time reminds me how "alive" our planet is,

Giuliana Panieri

professor of geology at the Arctic University of Norway and leader of the expedition

Researchers addedthat the slopes of the volcano abound with animals that feed on carbonate crusts - mineral deposits, formed when microorganisms consume methane and produce bicarbonate as a by-product product. They saw sea anemones, sponges, starfish, sea spiders, and various crustaceans.

Scientists call such volcanoes a rather rare window into the geological processes occurring deep under the earth's crust. They provide insights into past environments and conditions on Earth, and could also provide insights into systems on other planets, Panieri said.