Lafayette Reporter

A  University of Louisiana at Lafayette oceanographer is leading  researchers to unexplored deep-sea habitats of the North Atlantic Ocean.  And the public can tag along, thanks to technology.

Dr. Scott France, a professor in UL Lafayette’s Department of Biology,  is guiding an expedition from Virginia to Portugal aboard NOAA Ship  Okeanos Explorer, a 225-foot, federally funded research vessel. The  expedition began July 9 and will end July 30.

Scientists are plumbing the depths at about a dozen planned stops,  examining underwater topography and marine ecosystems. Those efforts are  happening via sonar mapping technology and a small submersible vehicle  that is tethered to the Okeanos via fiber-optic cable.

Once deployed, the remotely operated vehicle, or ROV, functions as a  multitasking underwater robot. It captures high-definition video and  images of the water column, seafloor habitats, and aquatic life; the ROV  also collects biological and geological samples.

“Technology has basically enabled us to get our eyes on the seafloor,  and we don’t know exactly what’s down there. We’re going places no one  has ever seen before, and that’s part of the interest, finding out  what’s there and why it’s there,” France said.

Among scientists’ primary objectives are to map and learn about  seafloor topography, including tectonic plate boundaries, volcanic  features and activity, and hydrothermal vents, which are fractures that  discharge geothermally heated water.

The marine life that thrives near those vents is of particular  interest to France. “You have various chemicals in that water that you  wouldn’t normally find. Bacteria can use those chemicals, and you get  huge populations that support other kinds of deep sea life,” he  explained.

Deep regions of the world’s oceans, France added, don’t typically  support abundant marine life “because there isn’t much food – which  comes from where there’s sunlight – except at hydrothermal vents.”

“That’s why they’re so special and unique, because they have this  source of energy. So you get to see some spectacular things around  them,” he said.

During each dive, the ROV beams video images back to researchers  aboard the ship in real time; several seconds later, scientists from  across the world who have registered to participate virtually see those  same images.

UL Lafayette graduate and undergraduate biology students being  mentored by France are following the expedition virtually from campus as  part of lab research, for classroom projects, or to complete  dissertations related to expedition discoveries.

So, too, is the public, which is able to access a separate feed  online. “Anyone who tunes in gets to see this stuff for the first time,  at almost the same time scientists are seeing it,” France said.

The expedition France is leading constitutes one leg of the larger  Voyage to the Ridge 2022, which is funded by the National Oceanic and  Atmospheric Administration. The overall voyage, which will unfold in  three parts, began May 11. It will end Aug. 18, when the Okeanos docks  in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

For his time aboard the ship, France boarded the vessel at Norfolk,  Va., and will disembark in Azores, Portugal. His stake in the expedition  won’t end there.

France is also the scientific advisor for a broader NOAA campaign.  Scientists have been exploring never before seen regions of the North  Atlantic since 2017. The current trip is the fourth journey for which  France has been a science lead.

During past expeditions, discoveries have included new species of  jellyfish, sea stars, corals and sponges. “We constantly find new  species, but we also witness lots of interesting behaviors. That’s one  of the great things about the video – we get the behavioral biology, not  just a static collection of something,” France said.

Beyond scientific value, much of what is encountered “is just plain  cool, especially because a lot of it is unexpected and happens very  quickly,” he explained.

On past expeditions, France has observed a brittle star, a  starfish-like creature with thin, undulating arms, snatch a squid from  the water column, for example. He’s seen a shark in a feeding frenzy get  eaten by an enormous grouper, which are fish with large, gaping mouths.

The ROV has also relayed video and images of cultural bounty back to  the Okeanos – shipwrecks. Still, France often remains most astonished at  “how much color and diversity there is down there and how many things  are moving around.”

“It’s always a bit of a surprise, and a lot of times it’s really  quite beautiful and exciting because many of the organisms are just so  unusual and so rare.”

Learn more about Voyage to the Ridge 2022 or how to follow the expedition online.

Photo caption: UL Lafayette’s Dr. Scott France  aboard the NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer during a past expedition. He has  returned to the ship as part of a three-week research voyage to explore  uncharted depths of the North Atlantic Ocean. Submitted photo

Original source can be found here.