Compared to the terrestrial surfaces of our own planet, or even those that are millions of miles away in the solar system, we know so little about the topography of the seafloor that new discoveries of massive features like seamountssuch as this one off the coast of Californiacontinue to be made today.
At the root of this is a problem of technology. The tools we use to image land above water rely on sending and recording wavelengths of light through methods such as satellite imaging or LiDAR. These can produce highly accurate and detailed pictures of the surface of the earth in a matter of days.
But light does not penetrate through seawater beyond the first few hundred feet. With the maximum depth of the ocean plunging to more than 36,000 feet, we need alternative methods for surveying the seafloor.
While light is rapidly attenuated in seawater, sound can travel for thousands of miles. Seafloor mapping technology relies on sonar devices
mounted either to the hull of a ship or on remotely operated and autonomous underwater vehicles. These devices emit pulses of sound in a fan shape across the seafloor, measuring the time it takes for the sound to travel and reflect off the seafloor, then return to the ship. With as many as 60 pulses of sound per second, the swath of the sonar survey can collect millions of data points of water depth as the ship travels.
Computer software transforms these data into a visual image of the seafloor. In November 2023, scientists from the USGS sailed approximately 350 miles from Honolulu, Hawaii, to explore a little-surveyed, crescent-shaped area of the seafloor south of the Hawaiian Islands. Working in partnership with BOEM and the NOAA Ocean Exploration Cooperative Institute, the USGS conducted bathymetric surveys and environmental DNA sampling aboard the ten-day expedition. This is the first time this partnership has investigated and characterized the seafloor geology and biology of the Hawaiian abyssal plain.
The deeper the seafloor, the more challenging it is to obtain a high-resolution map, because the sound must travel farther. Abyssal plains are often neglected in mapping efforts since they are deeper than the average depth of the seafloor and therefore challenging to map; they also generally have less charismatic fauna than shallower seamounts. Further, mapping efforts often focus on resolving features that can be seen through low-resolution satellite imagery, and at this resolution abyssal plains appear flat and featureless. However, abyssal plains are the largest ocean floor environment, and their sediments preserve the history of oceanic processes and support crucial biogeochemical processes, including carbon sequestration.
Bathymetric surveys allow us to understand not only the ocean depths and the shape of the seafloor (is it flat or steeply sloping?) but also tells us about its composition (is the surface texture hard or soft?) based on the relative intensity of the sound reflection. This information is crucially important because the shape and composition of the seafloor affects the physical and biological processes within the ocean. Bathymetric maps are the foundation for deep-sea exploratory missions aiming to understand regional biology, geology, and chemistry, and serve as important tools for defining marine protected areas.
Much in the way that a house with stairs as opposed to ramps to walk up and downor soft, plush carpet versus hardwood floorswould affect your comfort and mobility in your home ecosystem, the dynamic topography and structure of the seafloor shapes the types of ecosystems found on the seafloor. The sharp vertical relief offered by submarine canyons and continental shelves is also what drives ocean currents that cycle vital nutrients and oxygen to sustain marine food webs.
As the nations lead scientific mapping agency, the USGS brings a wealth of expertise in the interpretation of bathymetric survey data to understand the shape and geologic structure of the seafloor. Accurate, modern, high-resolution bathymetric maps are essential for delineating and protecting sensitive marine habitats, guiding the wise use of marine resources, ensuring safe maritime navigation, and detecting seafloor geologic hazards that can threaten coastal populations and infrastructure.
Because of the importance of this information and the existing data gaps, the U.S. is supporting global advancements in ocean mapping through a consortium of federal agencies forming the National Ocean Mapping, Exploration, and Characterization Council (NOMEC). As co-chair of the NOMEC council, the USGS helps lead the charge in coordinating and implementing collaborative mapping, exploring, and characterization of the nations ocean waters. With this Hawaiian expedition, the USGS contributes to mapping the gaps in U.S. waters and provides insight into this understudied ecosystem by characterizing its deep-sea biology and geology.
Strategic partnerships developed with other federal agencies such as BOEM and NOAA, as well as with private and academic collaborators such as the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Schmidt Ocean Institute, and Ocean Exploration Trust, have greatly expanded mapping and exploration of hazards and deep-sea ecosystems off the west coast of the United States.
The USGS has a unique role and mission as the federal provider of research expertise on marine geology, geophysics, and the processes that form and alter seabed and sub-bottom environments. USGS capacities in marine geology, geologic and oceanographic processes, and marine biology, ecology and geochemistry are all essential to NOMEC goals to map and characterize marine hazard and resource potential, seabed ecosystems, and the consequences of human and natural change.
See the article here:
- AI in Biology: So Is This the End of the Experiment? No. - Walter Bradley Center for Natural and Artificial Intelligence - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- Decoding the secret messages of data, biology and music : TED Radio Hour - NPR - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- Pivot Bio: How Biology is Starting the Next Agricultural Revolution, Featured at TEDxBoston - PR Newswire - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- University of Richmond Biology Professor John Peters Receives $500K NSF Award to Support Research on Learning and Memory - UR Now - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- THE REPRO RUNDOWN | Menstruation Myths, Hormonal Cycles, the Biology Behind the Bleed - Georgetown University The Hoya - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- Robert Haselkorn, Influential Researcher and Mentor in Molecular Genetics and Cell Biology, 1934-2025 | Newswise - Newswise - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- AI in Biology: What Difference Did the Rise of the Machines Make? - Walter Bradley Center for Natural and Artificial Intelligence - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- The Future of Innovation: Exploring the Global Synthetic Biology Market - EIN News - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- AI in Biology: AI Meets Intrinsically Disordered Proteins - Walter Bradley Center for Natural and Artificial Intelligence - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- Ask me anything: Artur Ekert 'Nature doesn't know that we divided all phenomena into physics, chemistry and biology' - physicsworld.com - March 5th, 2025 [March 5th, 2025]
- Nvidia Invests Further Into Healthcare And Releases The Largest Biology Foundation Model With The Arc Institute - Forbes - February 25th, 2025 [February 25th, 2025]
- Biology Seminar with Brandon Hedrick, Cornell University, February 28 - Ithaca College - February 25th, 2025 [February 25th, 2025]
- Bruker Spatial Biology to Announce Groundbreaking Advances at AGBT 2025 - Business Wire - February 25th, 2025 [February 25th, 2025]
- Pittsburgh Public Schools working to improve proficiency on Keystone biology exam - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette - February 25th, 2025 [February 25th, 2025]
- Kent Dunlap on the Biology, Evolution and Cultural History of the Neck - KQED - February 25th, 2025 [February 25th, 2025]
- Synthetic Biology Market Expected to Hit USD 186.48 Billion by 2034 with a Remarkable 25.90% CAGR - EIN News - February 25th, 2025 [February 25th, 2025]
- Synthetic Biology in Australia, China, and India: Insights from Asia and Pacific Research Center, Japan Science and Technology Agency - PR Newswire - February 25th, 2025 [February 25th, 2025]
- UT Tyler celebrating evolutionary biology with Darwin Day events - Yahoo! Voices - February 3rd, 2025 [February 3rd, 2025]
- ICDPBB 2025, bringing together global experts to discuss breakthroughs in plant biology and biotechnology - UoH Herald - February 3rd, 2025 [February 3rd, 2025]
- North Park, Northwestern Launch Synthetic Biology Internship Program - North Park University - February 3rd, 2025 [February 3rd, 2025]
- Land O Lakes High biology teacher is Pascos teacher of the year - Tampa Bay Times - February 3rd, 2025 [February 3rd, 2025]
- Hallmark discoveries in the biology of non-Wilms tumour childhood kidney cancers - Nature.com - February 3rd, 2025 [February 3rd, 2025]
- Fast-Forwarding Evolution: AI Mimics 500 Million Years of Biology - SciTechDaily - January 23rd, 2025 [January 23rd, 2025]
- Largest study on the genetics of bipolar disorder to date gives new insights into the underlying biology - Medical Xpress - January 23rd, 2025 [January 23rd, 2025]
- Bornean Orangutan Dies at the Smithsonians National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute - Smithsonian Institution - January 23rd, 2025 [January 23rd, 2025]
- Trump to define sex as based on biology, affecting federal prisons and shelters - Washington Examiner - January 23rd, 2025 [January 23rd, 2025]
- PhD Candidate, Biology - Brno, Czech Republic job with MASARYK UNIVERSITY | 386867 - Times Higher Education - January 23rd, 2025 [January 23rd, 2025]
- Martinsburg High School biology teacher Renee Haines receives the PAEMST - Martinsburg Journal - January 23rd, 2025 [January 23rd, 2025]
- LanzaTech to spin off LanzaX synthetic biology platform - The Business Journals - January 23rd, 2025 [January 23rd, 2025]
- Molecular Biology Enzymes and Kits & Reagents Industry Outlook, - openPR - January 23rd, 2025 [January 23rd, 2025]
- Studies reveal a new biology of Huntingtons, renewing drugmaker interest in therapies - STAT - January 23rd, 2025 [January 23rd, 2025]
- Rapid action needed to stop the UK falling behind in synthetic biology - Chemistry World - January 23rd, 2025 [January 23rd, 2025]
- Vanessa Carlton Reveals That She and Fellow '00s Icon Julia Stiles Met 30 Years Ago in 9th Grade Biology (Exclusive) - PEOPLE - January 23rd, 2025 [January 23rd, 2025]
- Cyclin-dependent protein kinases and cell cycle regulation in biology and disease - Nature.com - January 15th, 2025 [January 15th, 2025]
- Bioptimus brings its funding to $76M for the GPT of biology - Tech.eu - January 15th, 2025 [January 15th, 2025]
- Influenza A virus in dairy cattle: infection biology and potential mammary gland-targeted vaccines - Nature.com - January 15th, 2025 [January 15th, 2025]
- Giant Pandas Will Make Their Public Debut Jan. 24 at Smithsonians National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute - Smithsonian's National Zoo and... - January 15th, 2025 [January 15th, 2025]
- Breaking Boundaries in Spatial Biology: Exploring the 2D and 3D Landscape - Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News - January 15th, 2025 [January 15th, 2025]
- French firm Bioptimus bags 74M to build the GPT of biology that simulates biology instead of generating text - Silicon Canals - January 15th, 2025 [January 15th, 2025]
- UK at risk of falling behind in engineering biology, Lords Committee warns - Innovation News Network - January 15th, 2025 [January 15th, 2025]
- Computational Biology Market: Steady Growth Backed by Government Funding - openPR - January 15th, 2025 [January 15th, 2025]
- Challenging Viral Biology: Researchers Discover Mysterious Virus With Ribosomal Protein - SciTechDaily - January 1st, 2025 [January 1st, 2025]
- Insights into the biology and insecticide susceptibility of the secondary malaria vector Anopheles parensis in an area with long-term use of... - January 1st, 2025 [January 1st, 2025]
- Artificial Intelligence in Biology: From Neural Networks to AlphaFold - The Scientist - January 1st, 2025 [January 1st, 2025]
- Visiting Clinical Assistant Professor of Biology, Department of Biology - The Chronicle of Higher Education - December 23rd, 2024 [December 23rd, 2024]
- Medicinal Plant Biology Successfully Indexed in We | Newswise - Newswise - December 23rd, 2024 [December 23rd, 2024]
- Biology professor leads team authoring article on notable marine microbe - https://alvernia.edu - December 23rd, 2024 [December 23rd, 2024]
- The perfect pair: How biology and engineering are creating new breakthroughs in human health - National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute - December 23rd, 2024 [December 23rd, 2024]
- Read Some of the Most Exciting Stories From the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute in 2024 - Smithsonian Magazine - December 23rd, 2024 [December 23rd, 2024]
- Renovated biology lab inspires learning and collaboration - IU Newsroom - November 28th, 2024 [November 28th, 2024]
- New approach in amphibian biology: harmless viruses help to study the nervous system of frogs - European Research Council - November 28th, 2024 [November 28th, 2024]
- Space Biology, Tech Studies Fill Day as Station Boosts Orbit - NASA Blogs - November 28th, 2024 [November 28th, 2024]
- Johns Hopkins professor delivers lecture on breakthrough reproductive biology research - Liberty News - November 28th, 2024 [November 28th, 2024]
- Dr. Yvette Mercer relates her biology lessons to the real-world at Windsor Forest High School - WJCL News Savannah - November 28th, 2024 [November 28th, 2024]
- Discovery of a universal brain function: from biology to AI? - Techno-Science - November 28th, 2024 [November 28th, 2024]
- Biology Beyond the Classroom: Belize Study Abroad Course Offers Hands-On Experience College of Arts & Sciences - UofL Today - November 20th, 2024 [November 20th, 2024]
- A climate fund is way too generic, says Nucleus Capital - as it launches 40m fund focused on synthetic biology - Sifted - November 20th, 2024 [November 20th, 2024]
- WSU part of consortium exploring biology in space - WSU News - November 20th, 2024 [November 20th, 2024]
- Singleron Joins Forces with TOMY Digital Biology to Transform Single Cell Analysis in Japan - BSA bureau - November 20th, 2024 [November 20th, 2024]
- Saturday Citations: Cold dark matter takes a hit; a new paradigm for biology; those fracking earthquakes - Phys.org - November 20th, 2024 [November 20th, 2024]
- Breaking Down Molecules: Structural Biology's Big Innovations - openPR - November 20th, 2024 [November 20th, 2024]
- U of G Students Dive Into Learning in Unforgettable Marine Biology Course - University of Guelph News - November 20th, 2024 [November 20th, 2024]
- John Connolly Mad Hatter Q&A: "I had vague ambitions to be a vet, hampered slightly by Synge Street CBS refusing to teach us biology" - hotpress.com - November 20th, 2024 [November 20th, 2024]
- NMSU research team focuses on cancer biology through partnership, increase underrepresented student research - NMSU Newsroom - November 12th, 2024 [November 12th, 2024]
- Sea angels and devils: could plankton unlock the secrets of human biology? - The Guardian - November 12th, 2024 [November 12th, 2024]
- Synthetic Biology Market to Hit USD 31.52 Billion by 2029 with 20.6% CAGR | MarketsandMarkets - PR Newswire - November 12th, 2024 [November 12th, 2024]
- How ecDNA Fuels Cancer by Breaking the Laws of Biology - Howard Hughes Medical Institute - November 12th, 2024 [November 12th, 2024]
- Research Spotlight: Biology and Environmental Science, Psychology, and Religious Studies Faculty to Present Current Projects - Sherman Denison Herald... - November 12th, 2024 [November 12th, 2024]
- Symmetry in biology: A look into how bees actively organize nests in mirroring patterns - Phys.org - November 12th, 2024 [November 12th, 2024]
- UKRI invests 5.8m in engineering biology - Research Professional News - November 12th, 2024 [November 12th, 2024]
- HTAN Members Deliver Wealth of Tumor Biology Insights - Inside Precision Medicine - November 12th, 2024 [November 12th, 2024]
- Tenure-Track: Assistant Professor in Marine Biology job with Texas A&M University - Galveston | 37740878 - The Chronicle of Higher Education - October 26th, 2024 [October 26th, 2024]
- Teaching Assistant/Associate Professor, Chemistry and Chemical Biology - The Chronicle of Higher Education - October 26th, 2024 [October 26th, 2024]
- Emerging strategies to investigate the biology of early cancer - Nature.com - October 26th, 2024 [October 26th, 2024]
- Future Medicine: Physics, Biology, And AI Will Transform Human Health - Forbes - October 26th, 2024 [October 26th, 2024]
- NATIONAL VIEW: When AI looked at biology, the result was astounding - Odessa American - October 26th, 2024 [October 26th, 2024]
- Can We Pick Winners With Causal Human Biology? Vertex Makes the Case - Timmerman Report - October 26th, 2024 [October 26th, 2024]
- What Remains of Edith Finch Developers Next Game is About the Wonders and Horrors of Biology&... - GamingBolt - October 26th, 2024 [October 26th, 2024]
- Castle Biosciences to Support the 71st Annual Montagna Symposium on the Biology of the Skin - BioSpace - October 13th, 2024 [October 13th, 2024]
- 'Where we are today in biology AI is similar to GPT in 2020': An interview with the CEO of Africa's biggest AI startup - TechCrunch - October 13th, 2024 [October 13th, 2024]