A translucent white glass sponge sits on a sandy ocean floor surrounded by dark nodules.
image
Glass Sponge
The most frequently observed organisms during Dive 04 of the 2026 American Samoa ROV + Mapping Exploration expedition were glass sponges of various shapes and sizes. These included stalked sponges that may have been Farreidae species, Euplectellidae vase-shaped species, and flattened sponges that were the shape and size of a dinner plate.
Credit

NOAA Ocean Exploration, 2026 American Samoa ROV + Mapping Exploration