Scientists Discover Troves of New Species at the Ocean’s Deepest Depths

Earth’s hadal zone includes marine regions 19,700 to 36,000 feet (6,000 to 11,000 meters) below sea level. The reference to the Greek god of the underworld, Hades, is not coincidental—these are the deepest regions of our oceans, and one of the least explored areas on Earth. New research sheds light on this dramatic environment and the creatures that call it home despite the extreme conditions. Researchers used a cutting-edge Chinese submersible called Fendouzhe to plunge over 35,700 feet (10,900 m) below sea level and collect hundreds of biological samples from the hadal zone in the Yap Trench, the Philippine Basin, and the Mariana Trench—the deepest ocean trench on Earth. Of the more than 7,000 microbial species researchers documented in the samples, over 89% were previously unknown. Their study, published March 6 in the journal Cell, highlights surprising diversity in one of our planet’s most extreme environments. “Extraordinarily high novelty, diversity, and heterogeneity were obs ... Read full article.