At the base of the tallest (10 meter) visible chimney at this site , a new sight for the region reveals itself : dense communities of giant tubeworms thriving in a chemosynthetic environment fueled by billowing black smokers. This new vent site is the first vent field on the Galapagos Spreading Center with large focused black smokers as well as dense faunal (animal) communities , and is located far west of any other known communities. Image courtesy of UCSB, Univ. S. Carolina, NOAA, WHOI.
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GalAPAGoS: Where Ridge Meets Hotspot
GalAPAGoS: Where Ridge Meets Hotspot - Dec 29 Log
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