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The discoveries in the ocean are events that never cease to amaze, since it is a terrain about which almost nothing is known. An incalculable number of ecosystems, species, and natural phenomena that can occur without our knowing of their existence.
In 2021, during an expedition by the research icebreaker Polarstern over the Weddell Sea, an “underwater city,” was discovered, and a year later, the biologist Autun Purser published a scientific article in which he reported on this event.
The “underwater city” beneath the ice of Antarctica: How was it discovered?
In the discovery expedition an OFOBS towed camera and sensor system was used. The seafloor near the Filchner Ice Shelf was explored, descending between 420 and 535 meters.
What they captured with this system left them completely astonished: they found approximately 60 million Antarctic icefish nests. This estimate was made as follows:
- They recorded 16,160 nests in an area of around 45,600 square meters.
- This translates into one nest every three or four meters, over a surface of approximately 240 kilometers.
Next to 75% of the nests observed, in which it is estimated that between 1,500 and 2,500 eggs were housed, there was an adult fish standing guard.
What was the finding that surprised the scientists the most?
The discovery was even more surprising when they saw that the fish’s choice to develop this “underwater city” was no accident, since it is the entrance to a flow of much warmer water, reaching up to 2°C warmer than in other areas surrounding the zone.
60 million tons of biomass: the natural energy source discovered by scientists
In addition to the 60 million active nests, the scientists also found 60 million tons of biomass, and this large concentration of natural energy attracts predators, something that explained the large number of icefish carcasses around this area.
The researchers located the Weddell Sea seals, and estimate that the deepest dives they make are usually toward this colony, showing the food chain present in this ecosystem.