Muse 2020-01

January 2020 Volume 24 Number 01 cricketmedia.com $6.95

I should have
been a pair of
ragged claws
Scuttling across
the floors of
silent seas.

JANUARY 2020

muse®

40

Deep Chambers

Cave divers are discovering
the ancient past.

by Steve Murray

FEATURES 18 28 34

10 Scavenging for Artists at Sea TurtleCam
Knowledge
The Kraken’s True Form Illuminating Videos reveal the
Deep-sea research ocean mysteries secret life of sea turtles
Searching for a
mythical monster by Chloe Nunn by Catherine Brown by Susan Hunnicutt

by Kathryn Hulick

EDPEAPRATRMTMENETNSTS JANUARY 2020

2 Parallel U: Bombplastic Volume 24, Issue 01

by Caanan Grall DIRECTOR OF EDITORIAL James M. “Sentry” O’Connor
EDITOR Johanna “Audacia” Arnone
6 Muse News Kathryn “Hercules” Hulick
CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Tracy “Callista” Vonder Brink
by Elizabeth Preston CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Emily “McBoatface” Cambias
Nicole “Nautilus” Welch
14 Science@Work: ASSISTANT EDITOR Morgan “Alvin” Atkins
ART DIRECTOR Caanan “Falkor” Grall
Stefan Sievert DESIGNER David “Challenger” Stockdale
CARTOONIST
by Rachel Kehoe
RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS
22 Timeline:
BOARD OF ADVISORS
Fathoming the Ocean
ONTARIO INSTITUTE FOR STUDIES IN EDUCATION,
by Peg Lopata UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO
Carl Bereiter
47 Your Tech
ORIENTAL INSTITUTE, UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO
by Kathryn Hulick John A. Brinkman

48 Last Slice NATIONAL CREATIVITY NETWORK
Dennis W. Cheek
by Nancy Kangas
COOPERATIVE CHILDREN’S BOOK CENTER, A LIBRARY
YOUR TURN OF THE SCHOOL OF EDUCATION, UNIVERSITY OF
WISCONSIN–MADISON
3 Muse Mail K. T. Horning
26 Hands-on: If You
FREUDENTHAL INSTITUTE
Were a Deep-Sea Jan de Lange
Dweller
FERMILAB
by Carrie Tillotson Leon Lederman

33 Q&A UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE
Sheilagh C. Ogilvie
by Lizzie Wade
WILLIAMS COLLEGE
38 Do the Math: Jay M. Pasachoff

Can You Stand UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO
the Pressure? Paul Sereno

by Nick D’Alto MUSE magazine (ISSN 1090-0381) is published 9 times a year, monthly except for combined
May/June, July/August, and November/December issues, by Cricket Media, 70 East Lake
46 Contest: Undersea 3D Street, Suite 800, Chicago, IL 60601. Additional Editorial Office located at 7926 Jones Branch Dr,
Ste 870 McLean, VA 22102. Periodicals postage paid at McLean, VA, and at additional mailing
AARTI offices. One-year subscription (9 issues) $33.95. Canadian and other foreign subscribers must
add $15.00 per year and prepay in U.S. dollars. GST Registration Number 128950334. For ad-
OKONKWO dress changes, back issues, subscriptions, customer service, or to renew, please visit shop.
cricketmedia.com, email cricketmedia@cdsfulfillment.com, write to MUSE at Cricket Media,
CHILDHOOD FRIEND O PO Box 6395, Harlan, IA 51593, or call 1-800-821-0115. Postmaster: Please send address changes
HEIGHT 5'5" to MUSE, Cricket Media, PO Box 6395, Harlan, IA 51593.
AGE 13
BORN San Francisco Editorial office, 70 E. Lake Street, Suite 800, Chicago, IL 60601. January 2020, Volume 24, Num-
INTERESTS Art and design, ber 01, © 2019, Cricket Media, Inc. All rights reserved, including right of reproduction in whole
engineering, nano constructs, or in part, in any form. For information regarding our privacy policy and compliance with the
documentaries Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, please visit our website at cricketmedia.com or
ONCE SAID “Yeah, I kind write to us at CMG COPPA, 70 East Lake Street, Suite 800, Chicago, IL 60601.
of knew I was onto a major
historical discovery . . .” “Q&A,” text © 2014 by Elizabeth Wade

Photo credits: C - Jordi Chias/NaturePL/Science Source; 3 (LT) Lubo Ivanko/Shutterstock.com,
(BC) Emily Li/Shutterstock.com; 4 (RC) Jesus Cervantes/Shutterstock.com; 5 (RT) HeinzTeh/
Shutterstock.com; 6 (CC) Annette Shaff/Shutterstock.com; 7 (RB) Zhongda Zhang/Current
Biology, (RB-2) Lida Xing; 8 (TC) David A Keegan, (LB) NASA/JPL, (RB) lineartestpilot/Shutterstock.
com; 9 (TC) NUM LPPHOTO/Shutterstock.com, (TC-2) Damsea/Shutterstock.com; 12 (RT) Triton,
13 (LT) ERIKO SUGITA/REUTERS/Newscom; 17 (LT) Photo courtesy Stefan Sievert/ Woods
Hole Oceanographic Institution; 14, 15 (TC), (RB), 16 (LT), 17 (RT) Dr. Stefan Sievert; 15 (CC), 16
(RC), 17 (LB) MicroOne/Shutterstock.com; 18 (bkg) Evikka/Shutterstock.com, (CC) Rakshenko
Ekaterina/Shutterstock.com; 19 (RT) National Oceanography Centre, UK., (LB) University of
Southampton; 20 (TC) NOAA, (CC) KARL GAFF/Science Source, (RB) Flas100/Shutterstock.com;
20 (RB-2) Morphart Creation/Shutterstock.com; 21 (LT), (RT) National Oceanography Centre, UK;
22 (bkg) Bur_malin/Shutterstock.com, (TC) robuart/Shutterstock.com, (RB) PA Images / Alamy
Stock Photo, (LC) magnola/Shutterstock.com; 27 (RC) De Agostini Picture Library, (LB) JUNIORS
BILDARCHIV, (LC) History and Art Collection / Alamy Stock Photo, (LT) Artmedia / Alamy Stock
Photo; 28 (TC) Rebecca Rutstein, (border) Yauheniya Stryzhak/Shutterstock.com; 29 (RT), (RC),
(BC) Karen Romano Young; 30 (LT), (RT), (RC) Adam Swanson; 31 (TC), (LC), (RC), (LB) Elizabeth
Taber; 32 (LT), (CC), (BC) Michelle Schwengala-Regala; 33 (TC) Maryna Terletska/Shutterstock.
com; 34-35 imageBROKER/SeaTops/Newscom; 36 (LT), 37 (LT) Cape Eleuthera Institute, 36 (LC),
37 (LC) Nathan J. Robinson; 40-41, 41 (RB), 42 (LT), 42-43, 43 (RB), 44 (LT), (LC), (RB), 45 (LT), (RT), (RC),
(LB) courtesy of the Hoyo Negro Project; 47 (LT), (RT) VICTOR HABBICK VISIONS/SPL; BC - anmo/
Shutterstock.com.

Printed in the United States of America.

1st printing Quad Sussex, Wisconsin December 2019

From time to time, MUSE mails to its subscribers
advertisements for other Cricket Media products
or makes its subscriber list available to other
reputable companies for their offering of products
and services. If you prefer not to receive such mail,
write to us at MUSE, PO Box 6395, Harlan,
IA 51593-1895.

PARALLEL U CAANAN GRALL

2

Muse Mail Not So Boring

LETTER I am the Duchess of Sassytown
of the (aka Dutch), and I want to
Gabbing about Goats MONTH declare that Muse is really cool.
It’s so cool that I am writing this
I LOVE goats. They are my very favorite animal, letter. My family usually gets
as I have six goats at the moment, along with four boring magazines, but Muse is
cows, one donkey, three dogs, four cats, and 14 chickens. I’m just about a trillion times better
REALLY wanting peacocks. than those. I was also wondering
if you could do an article about
Anyways I’ve mentioned that I have goats and we make soap music and/or art. A cooking
out of their milk and then I saw the homemade soap recipe in one would be sick as well. Food
the September 2018 issue and tried it, and it’s AWESOME! science is the best. I’m not going
I was also wondering if you could do an article on goats? I to threaten you to put this in
know A LOT about them, but I think that if you did an article an article, cause I’m not a crazy
on them, then other people could see that goats truly are the person. I’m a dragon person. And
greatest of all time!! People think goats are not smart and that that’s a different kind of crazy . . .
they are smelly, but it’s not true. Goats are extremely smart; (O rocks! No offense though,
some scientists think just as or more intelligent sorry!)
than a dog, and I believe it! Also, if goats are
kept right, they don’t stink very much! —THE DUCHESS OF SASSYTOWN /

—GABRIELLE age 11 / New Hampshire

Ah, goats. Smart, stubborn, Food! Science! Two of my
sometimes a little smelly . . . favorites in one! I wonder
reminds me of someone I know. if I can convince Ms.
Acorn to let me back
—AARTI into the kitchens after
the Jam Incident . . .
Hey!
—O
—O
_________________

Is the Truth Out There?

I am a researcher of the
Ancient Astronaut Theory,
which is a funny, fake way of
saying that I watch ancient alien
shows with my dad. I read every
magazine and I realize that
in all the time that I’ve gotten
them you’ve never talked about
“ancient aliens.” Crop circle and
Area 51 theories are my favorite
topics. You should publish
this, otherwise I will have you
abducted! Thank you.

Ms. Acorn, you are the best. .
. . I wish you were my teacher. I
love the rest of you too.

—AUDREY / age 12 / the Unknown

Greetings Audrey. Even though
“ancient aliens” are made
up, they make for some fun
stories! Although . . . if I went
to an alien planet, maybe I’d

want to write my name in a field
somewhere too.

—MS. ACORN

art by Lisa Fields 3

Muse Mail be a veterinarian on the planet
Earth. I HATE horror movies, and
art by Matthew Billington I don’t understand why people
like them; I’ve been to Earth
Fair and Balanced seeing as I live underwater. countless times (I am writing
Well, I simply put my address this in one of my trips to Earth); I
Greetings from Michigan! as “anywhere in the Atlantic have a dog; and my fave is Cate.
My name is Kara. I have been Ocean.” No, the mailman
reading/addicted to Muse since doesn’t think that’s weird! You Since it is improper for
the November/December 2017 humans. Sigh . . . me to write a threat, which is
issue. Now to the point of this happening a lot, I will write
letter. In the May/June 2018 —X-2 XYXA / age 11 / the Atlantic a positive note. If this letter
issue, Your Tech was asking the gets published, I will send 59
question, do bionic limbs give P.S. X-2 Xyxa is obviously packages of the planet’s best
athletes an unfair advantage? pronounced “Ella,” which is technology, (planet hx’s tech is
It also asked if athletes with totally not my real name. 4,000 times better than Earth’s)
blade legs should compete to make your magazines better!
with non-disabled athletes. P.P.S. O, you are crazy! Which Also, I will send cute hamsters
First of all, it’s not a disability. is why I like you. (aka fuzzy little potatoes) to
_________________ cuddle up with forever!
Second of all, of course! I
have a friend who has a blade Vet from Beyond —THE DUCHESS / age 11
leg, and it in no way makes her the Stars
superhuman. I’m also asking if _________________
you will publish an article on Hello from the planet of hx!
prosthetics, and how they are (Pronounced “hawks.”) You see, Critter Collector
made/work. I am the archduchess of this
planet (yes, planets can have I have been sent only three
—KARA G. / age 12 / Michigan an archduchess). The queen issues of Muse, and I already
wanted me to tell you that love it! I have 39, yes, 39 stuffed
P. S. If this gets put in the our fellow subjects enjoy your teddy bears! Plus my dog, who is
FMP, I will send all the dragons magazines very much! I don’t basically a bear cub because she’s
of Pyrrhia to attack HQ! know if I’m allowed to add so fluffy. I think you should write
_________________ my own thoughts, but I am, an article about cell structures
so please don’t tell her. I have because I think it’s really
Written with Squid Ink been interested in veterinary interesting. I learned a little
medicine, and I mean, A LOT! about it last year in science, but
My name is X-2 Xyxa. No, So, I’ve been wondering, if you it was so complicated I forgot. I
I’m not an alien! Why do you can perhaps maybe publish want to remember it this time,
land-creatures always assume an issue about the topic? so if you write an article, I will be
that?! I’m a mermaid. I mean, Some fun facts about me, the very happy. If you throw this in
I always thought that was so archduchess of the planet hx: I the FMP, I will send all 39 bears
obvious. I suppose you are am a Hufflepuff, and I want to and my dog after you and you
wondering how I read Muse, will regret it. But if you publish
this, it will me really really
excited and I will bounce around
until my legs hurt.

—LILLY / age 12/ Massachusetts

4

Peachy Keen Lots o’ Lego Love

I am PeachCat the cat Greetings from Lego King
warrior! This is my first time Adam! First, I want to say that
writing to you. My favorite I LOVE LEGOS! So send me
character is O. I played with some (don’t tell my mom—
the HPBs, and they thought she’ll just send them back).
I was one of them. Hey, O, By the way, what is the FMP
did you know that eating anyway? I have robotic Legos.
too many beets makes My favorite music is the Beach
your insides pinks? This is Boys. Do I have anything else
PeachCat over and out! to say? Oh yes, I do! Can you
please create an issue about
—PEACHCAT / Pennsylvania Legos? Please?

Ummm, thanks PeachCat. I gave —ADAM K. / Virginia
O the message and then
immediately regretted P.S. If you throw this into
it when I saw just how the FMP, I will send my army
many beets he piled of MINDSTORMS—trust me, I
onto his lunch plate. will!!—to not just destroy your
headquarters but you too!!
—CATE
If You Can’t Get Fresh, Store-bought Is Fine
_________________
Congratulations, Muse HQ! You have received the Fan Letter
Dangerous Bounty Starter Kit! This contains everything you need to create your own
fan letter like others have been sending you. Inside, you’ll find:
I am an alien bounty hunter
from the Planet Er’Kit. Am 1 pouch of greeting (Hello, my name is _____ and I love Muse
I a friend or foe? Well, if this so much!)
ends up in the fan mail pit 16 gallons of personal info, often fabricated (I am a _____ and I
(FMP), I will be your most live in ____. I am ____ years old, etc.)
powerful enemy! If not, I will A box of recently read mags (I just re-read Issue _______ [date])
be your ally. Maybe. 3 pinches of requests for articles (I’d LOVE it if you could do a
magazine on ______)
To make sure you stay A peck of hobbies and interests (I’d love to be a ____ and I’m
on my good side, follow my passionate about ____)
instructions: Put O and Whatsi 1 plea for mercy (Please do not put this in the fan mail pit, aka
in the magazine more. Publish the FMP, or I’ll ______)
this letter. Follow those
instructions and I will be your *Note, the plea for mercy can end in one of two ways: an empty
friend and your fan. Don’t? threat (I’ll send an army of _____ after you! Mwahahaha!) or an
My molecule disruptor will anti-empty threat (Sadly, I do not have ______, but I’ll just be
disintegrate Muse HQ. What very sad).
is with all the HPBs? I could
crush them all if I wanted Thanks for purchasing the Starter Kit! If you have questions,
to! I will, too, if I see 10 more my number is useless. The only way to contact me is by filling
show up. I love reading your a human skull with sea urchins from the Mariana Trench and
magazines! shaking it vigorously into the night. I will hear you eventually.

—JASON M. / New Hampshire —HELENA “CALIMOUSIE” L. / age 12

What’s up, potential ally. I’m a Something to say?
fan of alien bounty hunters and Send letters to Muse Mail,
not at all a fan 70 E. Lake St., Suite 800,
of people who
crush innocent Chicago, IL 60601,
bystanders. or email them to
Just FYI. [email protected].

—WHATSI

5

Muse News

PSYCHOLOGYtext © 2019 by Elizabeth Preston One of
these stories is
Are You FALSE. Can you
Stressing Out spot which one?
Your Dog? The answer is on

W hen humans feel page 46.
anxious, they may make
their pets more stressed
too. Researchers saw this
when they studied 58
pairs of dogs and female
owners in Sweden. At two times during the year,
the researchers analyzed pieces of dog fur and
human hair from their subjects. They looked
for cortisol, a hormone that goes up when
we’re stressed.

When people had more cortisol, their dogs
had more cortisol too. Questionnaires showed
that dogs’ cortisol wasn’t linked to the dogs’
personalities. But it was linked to the
personalities of their owners. The scientists
think that when humans are stressed, it rubs
off on their canine pets. Dogs catch our bad
feelings like a cold.

It makes sense, because dogs live closely
with us and are experts at reading our body
language. (Think about how your pup looks for
the tiniest clues that you’re about to take her for
a walk.) To help your dog chill out, may we
suggest a nice belly rub?

6

This is an
illustration,
not a photo.
Honestly.

TECH DESK

Where No Drone Has Gone Before

NASA IS PLANNING A MISSION that will be the first of its kind. Engineers will send a drone to Titan, a moon of
Saturn. Scientists think Titan is similar to Earth in its early days. At about -290º Fahrenheit (-179º C), though, it’s
much colder. The drone, called Dragonfly, will zip around Titan for more than two and a half years. It will land in
many different environments to gather data. Researchers hope that data will teach them more about how life may
have arisen on Earth, billions of years ago. Don’t hold your breath, though. Dragonfly is scheduled to launch in 2026.
That means it won’t reach Titan until 2034.

PALEONTOLOGY

My, What a Big
Toe You Have ››

FOR THE FIRST TIME, scientists have discovered
an ancient bird species trapped in amber. Amber
is an orange-colored stone made of fossilized tree
goo. It’s better known for holding prehistoric bugs.
But in a chunk of amber about 100 million years
old from Myanmar, researchers found a bird foot.
And the bird it belonged to must have been
pretty weird.

The foot has four toes, like most of today’s birds.
But the third toe is much longer than all the
others. Researchers don’t know of any other
bird—ancient or modern—that has feet quite like
this. They think the big-toed bird is a new species.
They named it Elektorornis chenguangi. The bird
likely lived in trees, where it might have used its
super-long toe to dig bugs out of branches.

7

Muse News

Nora Keegan’s published research
showed that hand dryers are often
dangerously loud. Her school has
now installed quieter dryers!

ACOUSTICS

Better Than a Baking-Soda Volcano

FOR ONE CANADIAN KID, the have more sensitive ears than were at different heights, with or
end of the science fair didn’t mean adults, and their heads are closer without hands below them. Many
the end of her research. She turned to the dryers. Nora and her parents of the dryers were dangerously
her project on loud hand dryers started visiting public restrooms in loud, she found.
into a published scientific paper. places like restaurants, libraries,
and schools and measuring sound In seventh grade, Nora wrote up
Nora Keegan’s research started levels from dryers. For the science a scientific paper describing her
as her fifth-grade science fair fair in sixth grade, Nora continued study. A Canadian journal
project. She wondered whether her research. She visited a total of published the paper last summer.
hand dryers in public restrooms 44 dryers and tested how loud they That’ll be hard to top in next year’s
could hurt kids’ hearing. Children science fair.

UP IN SPACE

Mars Burps

IN JUNE 2019, the Mars rover called Curiosity sniffed out the largest
amount of methane gas it’s ever found on the planet. Days later, the gas
was gone. The source of the red planet’s giant burp is still a mystery. The
methane might have a geological source—or it might have come from
Martian microbes.

8

SEA SALAD That’s the news!
Go to page 46 to
Sea Cucumbers Have see if you spotted
a New Cousin the false story.

AS SOON AS SCIENTISTS SPOTTED tapered. One end was wide, and the
THIS BIZARRE CREATURE, they knew other end formed a narrow point. And
what they had to name it. The sighting the critter’s skin was bright orange. The
came from a robotic submarine that researchers called it a sea carrot.
was exploring the floor of the Pacific
Ocean. Through the vehicle’s camera, a Because this is the first time anyone
tube-shaped animal appeared. It was has glimpsed a sea carrot, scientists
crawling on the sea floor. It looked sort still have many questions about the
of like a sea cucumber, with a long, new species. What does it eat? Where
squishy body. But instead of being does it live? Because the animal
cucumber-shaped, the animal was scooted in both directions, it’s not even
clear which end is its head.

9

KraThke en’s
True Form

HOW DOES THE SEARCH FOR A MYTHICAL SEA MONSTER END?

by Kathryn Hulick illustrations by Gordy Wright

Centuries ago, stories
chronicled beasts that
could swallow ships.

10

he submersible dives It’s a lovely sight. But the people
down, deeper and inside the bright yellow Triton
deeper. The color submersible are not looking for small
creatures, no matter how flashy. They
T of the surrounding have come to the Ogasawara islands
water fades from blue of Japan on this summer day in 2012
green to rich blue and finally to to search for a massive beast.
gray-black. Suddenly, out of the
blackness, a jellyfish covered with Its eyes are each the same size as
dancing lights appears. a human head. It grabs prey using
eight long arms and two even longer
feeding tentacles. With these tentacles
stretched out, it can reach the height
of a four-story building. On each of
its arms and tentacles, hundreds of
suction cups with sharp, serrated
edges cut into whatever it grabs. It
devours each meal with a sharp beak
and toothed tongue.

Inside its body, three hearts beat,
pushing blue blood through the
creature’s veins. And its skin changes
color, shimmering through hues of
metallic silver and bronze. Should
any other creature try to attack it,
the beast sprays out a cloud of jet-
black ink. This cloaks its escape. On
this dive, the group fails to find what
they’re looking for. But they will keep
trying. What is this monster they
seek? Could it possibly be real?

Mythical Monsters

Sea monsters have swum through
myth and folklore as far back as the
thirteenth century, when The Saga
of Arrow-Odd, an Icelandic romance,
mentioned a beast called Hafgufa
that swallowed men and ships. In
1555, Olaus Magnus, an archbishop
in Sweden, described and illustrated
several sea monsters, writing that
one of these beasts could drown
many great ships. In 1755, bishop Erik
Pontoppidan described the kraken, a
beast so large it resembles a string of
small islands. He wrote it was “round,
flat, and full of arms, or branches.”
When a kraken rises to the surface, he
writes, smart fishermen “take to their
oars and get away as fast as they can.”

11

Scientists used a
yellow Triton sub-
mersible to seek
the giant squid.

In 1874, the London Times The Real Kraken
published an account of a huge,
squid-like beast attacking a ship Sailors and fishermen are famous
called the Pearl in the Indian for telling tales. Many stories of
Ocean. According to this story, a the kraken veer far from reality.
passing vessel rescued the captain, For example, the existence of the
James Floyd, and several crew Pearl and its captain has never been
members. Floyd reported that verified. Nickell discovered that the
“Monstrous arms like trees seized London Times reprinted the story of a
the vessel and she keeled over; kraken attack on a ship from a British
in another second the monster paper in India. Most likely, the story is
was aboard . . .” Next, the crew fiction, inspired by author Jules Verne.
apparently fought the beast with His hugely popular science-fiction
axes, but in the end, it pulled the book Twenty Thousand Leagues Under
ship under water. the Sea, published five years before
the London Times story, described

Q&A

Q: What is Strange but True about?

A: The book is about the real science and history behind paranor-

mal mysteries—including aliens and UFOs, ghosts, zombies, Bigfoot
DQG <HWL $WODQWLV SV\FKLFV DQG PRUH ,WłV ğQH WR ZRQGHU DERXW
WKHVH PDJLFDO LGHDV %XW , DOVR HQFRXUDJH VFLHQWLğF FULWLFDO WKLQNLQJ
DQG SUDFWLFLQJ WKH DUW RI GRXEW 7KDWłV WKH RQO\ ZD\ WR JHW DW WKH
WUXWK EHKLQG WKH VWUDQJHQHVV LQ WKH ZRUOG

Q: When did you know you wanted to be a writer?

A: ,łYH NQRZQ , ZDQWHG WR ZULWH ERRNV VLQFH , ZDV HLJKW \HDUV ROG

,Q KLJK VFKRRO , XVHG WR VXEPLW VWRULHV DQG GUDZLQJV WR RQH RI
Muse’s VLVWHU PDJD]LQHV , ZDV WKULOOHG WR JHW RQH GUDZLQJ SXEOLVKHG
$IWHU FROOHJH , GLG DQ LQWHUQVKLS ZLWK WKH &ULFNHW PDJD]LQH JURXS
,łYH EHHQ ZULWLQJ IRU WKHP IRU RYHU \HDUV QRZ 0\ HGLWRU IRU
Strange but True WROG PH VKH ZDQWHG WR ZRUN ZLWK PH EHFDXVH
she’d read and enjoyed my articles in Muse.

Q: Where did you get the idea for this book?

A: ,łYH DOZD\V ORYHG WKH LGHD RI PDJLF :KHQ , ZDV \RXQJ ,

EHOLHYHG WKDW LI , VWDUHG LQWR D FDQGOH ĠDPH ORQJ HQRXJK , FRXOG
OHDUQ KRZ WR PRYH WKLQJV ZLWK P\ PLQG , QHYHU GLG ğJXUH WKDW
RXW 1RZ , WKLQN ğQGLQJ RXW KRZ WKH KXPDQ EUDLQ DFWXDOO\ ZRUNV
LV HYHQ PRUH LQWHUHVWLQJ %XW ,łYH QHYHU ORVW P\ IDVFLQDWLRQ ZLWK
WKH SDUDQRUPDO , ZDQW WR NQRZ ZK\ SHRSOH EHOLHYH LQ VHD PRQ-

12 VWHUV SV\FKLFV RU DOLHQV :KDWłV JRLQJ RQ LQ WKHLU EUDLQV"

“We’ve done it,” exclaimed surrounding water. Most deep
marine biologist Tsunemi ocean animals can’t see the deepest
Kubodera on a 2012 dive. shades of red. But they can see the
bait, a 3-foot- (1-m-) long squid tied
“I was now the possessor of one of the rarest to a string that trails from the sub.
curiosities in the whole animal kingdom—the It sports a flashing light lure.
veritable tentacle of the hitherto mythical
devilfish, about whose existence naturalists Two hours pass. Then, out of
have been disputing for centuries.” the blackness, something appears.
It reaches for the bait with long,
an almost identical battle in which A few years later, fishermen in suction-cupped arms. “It’s a giant
a ship’s crew wielded axes against a Newfoundland managed to recover squid! We’ve done it!” An excited
huge, many-armed creature. a tentacle and gave it to naturalist Kubodera says in Japanese. He
Reverand Moses Harvey. In an takes a chance and turns on the
However, it’s also true that dead 1899 article, he wrote, “I was now sub’s bright white lights, but the
bodies of large, many-armed sea the possessor of one of the rarest creature does not swim away. It
creatures with toothy suction cups curiosities in the whole animal feeds for 23 minutes as Kubodera
and giant eyes have been washing up kingdom—the veritable tentacle of and his colleagues watch, in awe.
on beaches for hundreds of years. The the hitherto mythical devilfish, about They are the first humans to come
earliest known record comes from whose existence naturalists have been eye to eye with a giant squid in the
Iceland in 1639. The description of disputing for centuries.” Clearly, the deep sea. When it finally leaves,
the creature states that it had seven kraken was not as huge or bloodthirsty Kubodera leans back, staring
tails densely covered with a type of as the legends made it out to be. But upwards. All he can say is, “Oh!”
button. These were likely tentacles it was real. It was the giant squid. Still,
with suction cups. In 1673, another the creature remained shrouded in There’s no doubt about it.
one washed ashore in Ireland. Carl mystery. As of 2012, no one had ever The giant squid is a real sea
Linnaeus, the scientist who founded the seen one alive in its natural habitat. monster. And even more amazing,
modern method of classifying animals, That was about to change. unknown creatures likely remain
described the kraken as a cephalopod hidden in Earth’s oceans. We
mollusk in 1735. And in 1853, after the An Alien Encounter have better maps of the surface
body of a huge, dead squid washed of Mars and Venus than of the
up on a beach in Denmark, naturalist The Triton descends once more. ocean floor. What could be down
Japetus Steenstrup recovered the beak This time, marine biologist Tsunemi there? No one knows. Edith
and used it to give the species a new Kubodera of the National Museum Widder, a marine biologist who
name, Architeuthis monachus, the of Nature and Science in Tokyo is on took part in the expedition that
giant squid. board. Dim red lights peer into the filmed the giant squid, says that
she welcomes any opportunity
to explore the world’s lakes and
oceans. Exploring “opens up
possibilities of seeing things we
couldn’t have imagined are there.”

Every day, scientists explore
the world, seeking the answers
to unsolved mysteries. It took
centuries of scientific research
and experimentation to finally
reveal the giant squid hiding
behind the mystery of the kraken.
What other mysteries remain to
be discovered and solved? The
only way to find out is to get out
there and look.

STRANGE BUT TRUE Copyright © 2019
by Kathryn Hulick and Gordy Wright.
Reproduced by permission of the
publisher, Frances Lincoln Children’s
Books, Beverly, MA

13

Science@Work

by Rachel Kehoe

STEFAN SIEVERT

MICROBIOLOGIST

Stefan Sievert has a PhD in microbial ecology and works at
the world-renowned Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in
Massachusetts. He studies microbes in one of nature’s most
challenging environments: hydrothermal vents. For Sievert,
what makes these tiny life forms fascinating is what they do
to live and grow. Unlike surface organisms that depend on
energy from the sun, microbes have evolved to survive using
chemosynthesis—a process where they use fluid from cracks in
the sea floor as fuel. Sievert’s research investigates the growth
of these microscopic organisms and how their appetite for
chemical-filled fluid helps feed the surrounding ecosystem.

14

The robotic arm of the research sub Alvin
holds an Isobaric Gas-Tight sampler.
Somewhat like a straw, it can suck in microbe-
filled vent fluid from below the seafloor.

WHAT HOOKED microbial adaptations at vents could help us understand stomach
YOUR INTEREST IN illnesses. Working out how microbes behave under different conditions
MICROBIOLOGY? may help us better understand the impacts of climate change.
________________
I was fascinated by how
individual microbes are so WHERE DID YOUR MOST RECENT EXPEDITION
small and yet have such a TAKE YOU?
significant impact on the
planet. Despite their size, I lead a team of researchers to visit Crab Spa, a well-known
combined they form the hydrothermal vent located 600 miles [480 km] off the coast of
largest biomass [or one Manzanillo, Mexico. This ecosystem is home to crabs, giant clams, and
habitat’s amount of living red-headed tubeworms up to 5 feet [1.5 m] long. Inside Alvin, a three-
matter] in the ocean. I wanted person research submarine, the pilot manipulates the robotic arms to
to know how microbes create collect fluid samples of microbes living below the seafloor.
energy and how they function
as the engine of life in the 15
deep sea.
________________

COULD YOU DESCRIBE
YOUR RESEARCH AT
THE WOODS HOLE
OCEANOGRAPHIC
INSTITUTION?

We collect and study samples
of microbes to understand
how they have adapted to
extreme conditions, what
chemicals they consume,
and how fast they grow.
Exploring how deep-sea
microbes function can help
us understand their impact
on humans and the planet.
For example, investigating

Science@Work Exploring
how deep-
sea microbes
function
can help us
understand
their impact
on humans
and the
planet.”

WHAT TOOLS HELP YOU COLLECT SAMPLES? Got the Yes! Now
sample! our seafloor
Taking samples can be challenging work. Some microbes live at aquarium will
the surface of deep-sea vents, but many others live below the sea be complete.
floor where it is difficult to reach. To solve this problem, scientists
use an Isobaric Gas-Tight sampler that sucks in microbe-filled
vent fluid like using a straw. These samplers are made of titanium
and maintain the same high pressure of the deep sea as they travel
back to the surface to be studied. Our newest device, called the
Vent-SID (Submersible Incubation Device), allows us to collect
fluids and measure the activities of the microbes directly at the
ocean floor. Being able to study samples as close as possible to the
natural conditions will help us to refine our estimates.
________________

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR MOST EXCITING DISCOVERY?

I was surprised to learn that the microbes sampled from Crab
Spa doubled their population in just a few hours! This research
confirms that the microbial communities at hydrothermal vents
are one of the ocean’s most productive ecosystems. We estimate
that they can produce 4,000 tons of carbon each day. The biomass
created by these microbes is crucial in supporting life higher up
the food chain.
________________

WHAT CHALLENGES DO YOU FACE?

The pressure in the deep ocean is immense. At Crab Spa, which
is 1.5 miles [2.4 km] below sea level, the pressure is 3,600 pounds
[1,600 kg] per square inch, enough to crush a Styrofoam cup into a
tiny thimble. These conditions represent a challenge for engineers
because they cause technology, like the Vent-SID, to malfunction.
This is frustrating, but part of working in the deep sea.

16

CHEMOSYNTHESIS: Scientists pose with the text © 2019 by Rachel Kehoe
FUELING LIFE IN new Vent-SID (Submersible
THE DARK ›› Incubation Device), which
measures microbial activity
In 1977, near the Galapagos at the ocean floor.
Islands, scientists were shocked
to discover large concentrations Another concern is the threat of human activities, like
of life surrounding hydro- deep-sea mining. This activity has the potential to disturb and even
thermal vents. Enormous clams, destroy entire vent ecosystems, including microbial communities.
giant tube worms, and hairy Once mined, the chance to learn about that particular vent site
crabs huddled near volcanic would be lost.
cracks that spewed boiling water ________________
from the sea floor. These animal
communities weren’t believed to WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT BEING
be possible in the deep ocean. A MICROBIOLOGIST?
At the time, scientists thought
all life depended on energy from I enjoy being able to follow my curiosity and to tackle unsolved
the sun, either through photo- scientific questions. That’s really fun! The opportunity to
synthesis or by eating organisms collaborate with experts from other fields is also fascinating.
produced by photosynthesis. I meet and collaborate with biologists, geochemists, and
How could this oasis of life exist oceanographers from all over the world. Working as a team allows
in total darkness? us to improve our understanding of how microbes function.
________________
The answer was chemo-
synthesis. In the absence of DO MYSTERIES REMAIN?
sunlight, microbes have evolved
to use energy from the chemicals The deep-sea still holds many secrets. Scientists have explored
in vent water. First, they consume less than 20 percent of the deep sea. We don’t know how many
the methane or hydrogen sulfide microbes metabolize chemicals from the sea floor or why some
that bubbles up from hydro- microbes become more dominant under different conditions. We
thermal vents. Inside the also need to discover and explore the microbe composition at
microbe, these chemicals are other hydrothermal vents and compare their levels of productivity.
oxidized, and oxygen and carbon There is plenty to discover and no shortage of work for the next
dioxide are mixed in. With this generation of ocean explorers.
process, the microbe can make
sugar for fuel and expel the Rachel Kehoe is a science writer and diver. If she ever gets to visit the
excess as sulfur and water. ocean floor, she would like to bring along a Styrofoam cup to shrink in
the deep-sea pressure (then bring it back to the surface to be recycled)!
Free-living microbes are
either eaten by vent organisms 17
or they form what are called
symbiotic relationships. For
example, microbes work together
with tubeworms, and the two
species depend on each other for
survival. The tubeworm provides
chemicals and protection for
the microbes that live in their
tissue. In return, the tubeworm
receives food from the sugar
the microbes produce. Many
different species live at hydro-
thermal vents, and they all
depend on chemosynthetic
microbes to survive.

Scavenging for

Knowledge
A CLOSE-UP VIEW OF DEEP-SEA RESEARCH
by Chloe Nunn

18

Icarefully lifted the small glass vial from the box
and gently pulled its cap off. Careful not to spill
the ethanol on my clothes, I slowly poured a little
onto the microscope tray. Then I used tweezers to
lift out the preserved specimen. It was a deep-sea
amphipod about the same size as a grain of rice. I typed
the information into my spreadsheet as I went . . . date:
February 20, 2017 . . . specimen number 417. Peering
down the microscope, I carefully measured and
dissected the specimen.
These tiny amphipods live in the deepest parts of Earth’s
blue oceans. Humans have explored space and looked back
at our blue planet. More than two thirds of it is covered in
water. But how and why do we dive down deep to study
the depths?
Over the years, technology available to marine scientists
has improved immensely. As a young oceanographer, I am
lucky enough to be able to use satellite data to measure t
hings like primary production—the use of carbon dioxide
and nutrients by tiny phytoplankton. However, a lot of what
we can see and measure from space is limited to looking at
the surface of the oceans. We can gauge the depth of the ocean
from space, but what’s contained within is largely a mystery.

Out to Sea

Even up close and personal, from the deck of a research
vessel, we require tools to help us understand what’s
happening below the surface. Five years ago, I stepped onto
Research Vessel Callista for the first time as a bright-eyed
marine science student. We used one of the most basic
methods for sampling the seafloor: we lowered a large

Scientists release
an amphipod trap.
Then they wait.

Research Vessel Callista one pulled a trigger, and it clamped shut. A few
tes later we hauled it back up to the boat, and
quantities of mud and water spilled out across
deck. We trawled through the limpets, crabs,
squirts, and occasional sea stars, learning
ut the local biology. As my interests developed,
anted to learn about deeper, darker realms.
ith that came new methodologies.
It can take a few hours for a remote-controlled
hicle or submersible to reach the abyssal plain.
t an average of 2.48 miles (4 km) deep, the
byssal plain is the standard seafloor for most
f the ocean. Scientists like to make the most of
a trip down to the seafloor. That’s true whether

19

Remotely operated vehicle
(ROV) Deep Discoverer captures
high-definition video in the deep
ocean. It can also take biological
and geological samples.

they are down there themselves Canyons are more likely to occur
or operating the vehicle from the where a river meets the ocean.
ship. Most of the deep-sea vehicles Great volumes of water sweeping
have high-tech arms, which can down from big rivers, such as
be equipped with a range of tools the Congo in Africa, don’t mix
and attachments. These allow with surrounding ocean water
researchers to collect specimens immediately. The currents they
or deposit traps and cameras. By create can dislodge sediment on
leaving a trap on the seafloor, marine Tiny amphipods the seafloor as it slopes down to
scientists can return later and hopefully are a keystone the abyssal plain, causing underwater
species.

find a far larger collection of specimens landslides. New canyons help these
than if they’d personally waited for hours, or even processes continue, funneling sediment deeper
days! My amphipod specimens were collected by this and deeper. Mixed in with the sediment are nutrients that
method—from the depths of a canyon. are vital for supporting life in the depths. Due to the higher
Canyons and trenches occur in a number of places concentration of nutrients and the currents in canyons,
throughout our oceans. The most famous is probably they support more kinds of life than the open space of the
the Mariana Trench in the Pacific Ocean. It stretches abyssal plain.
down almost 7 miles (11 km) ; that’s deeper than
Everest is tall! Trenches typically appear in places
where tectonic plates are shifting towards one another.

➜I FOUND A NEW N»»o»»»»t11nemw02omsaaflfeieutngoxeesyhrocrttaosu-flkfpoislflaepenlieelrcngednsiftaiodofnleoagndetgeoleesrsgcrssartinnpicestkaioirnndg: igoeffstoivfebtordayct opening

SPECIES! NOW WHAT?

When studying newly discovered species, it’s
important to describe them scientifically so future
researchers can identify them easily. How? It starts
with genetic testing and physical dissection. The
species also requires an official description, a very
accurate drawing, a technical description, and notes
on key elements of its lifecycle and lifestyle. This info
is usually published in a taxonomic key, along with
other descriptions for similar and related species.

20

Using a microscope, scientists sort
samples of deep-ocean amphipods.

Tiny Crustaceans By the end of my studies, I was keenly aware of the text © 2019 by Chloe Nunn
difficulties in studying deep-sea organisms. The challenges
Amphipods are tiny crustaceans similar to shrimp. They are not just limited to accessing their habitats. It’s also tough
often live in these canyons and scavenge for nutrient- to locate the organisms themselves. Finding amphipods in
rich particles. Amphipods are a food source for larger the deep, open ocean is like finding needles in a haystack.
organisms, fueling the food chain and ultimately the Scientists sometimes use trawls to scoop up whatever is in the
species that humans catch and eat. There are thousands sea around them, but there’s no guarantee that they’ll get what
upon thousands of amphipod species all over the world in they are looking for. The presence of our equipment also has
fresh and salty water, from the surface to the deep sea. We an impact on which species we collect. The traps are designed
can think of amphipods as a keystone species—one that to copy a food fall, as if the carcass of a fish has made its way
helps indicate how healthy an ecosystem is—because they from the surface to the deep. However, in some amphipod
are so common across the oceans. This was a factor in my species, males may not congregate at large food falls, opting
decision to study them. Well, that and the fact that it’s cool for smaller morsels to eat. Autonomous underwater vehicles
to learn about a species so very different to ourselves. (UAVs), such as the UK’s Boaty McBoatface autosub, may one
day let us gather biological data in hard-to-access areas.
In deep ocean science, we are constantly learning new
things and discovering new species. This makes studying Later I presented my research at a big sustainability
amphipods a challenge in itself, because first you have to symposium. Naturally, I completely forgot to use the
work out if the specimen you’ve collected is a new organism notes I’d carefully written. But after the nerves wore off, I
or not. Scientists start by baiting traps with tasty fish, could only feel excited that so many people were actually
setting them on the ocean floor, and leaving them for a interested in what I’d spent the last year doing! The meeting
period of time . When these traps are collected, they count gave me the opportunity to hear more about human
the organisms that have accumulated and separate them activities that affect amphipods. Offshore oil exploration is
by species. Then they ship off the most interesting ones to one example. The process of looking for oil in the seafloor
labs around the world, including mine! can be disruptive. It may reduce the availability of food for
deep-sea organisms. Because of the critical role amphipods
Highlights and Lowlights play in the ecosystem, problems in their food supply can
be very bad indeed. Habitats further from human activities
To me one of the most interesting aspects of my study aren’t guaranteed to be safe either. Scientists found plastic
was the fact that I didn’t directly observe how my amphipod particles in the stomach of an amphipod at the bottom of
species lives its life. Instead, I compared what I knew about the Mariana Trench! As populations of keystone species
it to studies of similar species. This allowed me to make decrease, the food sources for larger organisms, like the
assumptions about its lifestyle. Amphipods have excellent fish we want to eat, start disappearing too. Amphipods and
“smell” detecting abilities because large food falls are few humans seem to be worlds apart. And yet harm to rarely
and far between, even when funneled by canyons. For some seen organisms in the deepest darkest depths of the ocean
female amphipods, finding these food falls is especially could end up hurting us in the not-too-distant future.
important because they must gorge themselves before
reproducing. The eggs they produce and carry obscure Chloe Nunn is a 2018 National Geographic Explorer and budding
their stomachs, preventing them from feeding. So they oceanographer. She loves the deep-sea’s mysteries and hopes to
can only breed once in their lifetime. I discovered that travel there one day.
my sample of amphipods was mostly female adults that
had not quite reproduced.

21

TIMELINE

FthaethOocmeainng

A BRIEF HISTORY OF HUMANS
EXPLORING THE DEPTHS

by Peg Lopata

1521 Cornelius Drebbel, Dutch 1690
engineer and inventor, builds the

first submarine.

1620

Ferdinand Magellan attempts to English scientist Edmond
measure the depth of the Pacific Halley builds the first
Ocean. He uses a 2,400-foot (about diving bell, a chamber to
730-m) weighted line but does transport divers into deep
not touch bottom. This method to water with a continuous
reach the bottom of the sea uses air supply.
what is called a sounding line. Dimitri Rebikoff, underwater surveyor and oceanographer,
creates the first fully developed remotely operated vehicle
1957 (ROV) Poodle. ROVs are attached to a surface vehicle. They
are unoccupied, highly maneuverable underwater robots
operated by someone at the water surface. They typically have
cameras, thrusters, and lights. Some have mechanical arms to
lift, move, or grab objects.

1953

Sputnik 1, the world’s first satellite, launches
from the Soviet Union. This begins the use of
space-based technologies for science research,
including ocean floor exploration.

Jean de Wouters, a Belgian engineer, designs
the first successful underwater 35-mm
commercial camera.

Jacques Cousteau’s team builds A bathyscaphe carrying Don Walsh, an
the first research submarine, the American oceanographer, and Jacques
Picard, a Swiss oceanographer, explores
“Diving Saucer.” the section within the Mariana Trench
called the Challenger Deep, the deepest
part of the Pacific Ocean.

1959 * 960

* THE FIRST, DEEPEST DIVE
It was 60 years ago this month that the first humans reached the deepest part of the deepest ocean on Earth. US
Navy Lieutenant Don Walsh and Swiss engineer Jacques Piccard boarded the Trieste on the morning of January 23,
1960 and descended about 7 miles (11 km) down into the Mariana Trench to test the limits of their submersible.
The Trieste was a bathyscaphe, a huge gasoline-filled tank with a tiny sphere suspended underneath for the
crew. Because gasoline is lighter than water, the explorers could control their descent by releasing it gradually
to the ocean. Along the way, Walsh and Piccard heard a loud “crack” as water pressure built up around them but
decided to continue when everything else seemed normal.
They reached the bottom after about five hours . . . and saw swimming sea creatures, something scientists didn’t
expect in such a cold, dark place. After 20 minutes, they started back up.
Today, Walsh lives in Oregon and has seen many technological advances since his famous dive. “Unmanned
vehicles will do most of the future work,” he says, “but there will always be a place for [humans] in deep ocean
exploration.” He adds, “I was glad to be there at the beginning a half century ago.”

—Steve Murray

Lewis Nixon, American naval architect, invents the first sonar-like
listening device to detect icebergs. With sonar onboard, a ship can
send sound waves toward the ocean floor. When the sound waves hit
the bottom, they bounce back to the surface. Sonar receivers use the

returned signals to determine the depths of the seafloor.

1872–1876 1906

Scientists aboard the British expedition ship HMS
Challenger determine ocean depths by means of
wire-line soundings and discover a mountain chain of
about 10,000 miles (16,000 km) in the Atlantic Ocean.
The Challenger expedition collects data from the sea
surface down to the seafloor using new methods and
technologies, such as deep-sea winches and specialized
ropes for lowering equipment.

Scientists develop many new tools for ocean
exploration, including deep-ocean camera
systems, sidescan sonar instruments, and
early technology for guiding underwater
remotely operated vehicles (ROVs).

1943 1939–1945 1930

Jacques Cousteau, French Navy diver and A bathysphere takes explorer
undersea explorer, and Emile Gagnan, and inventor William Beebe to
French engineer, invent the “Aqua-Lung,” about 3,000 feet (915 m) below
a breathing device for divers. the surface of the ocean.

The first operational multibeam The Woods Hole Oceanographic Satellite radar altimetry debuts. It measures
sounding system is installed on an Institute’s human-occupied vehicle the time a radar pulse takes to travel from
American navy ship. It makes soundings the satellite antenna to the surface and
to the left, right and vertically beneath (HOV), Alvin, makes its first dives. back to the satellite receiver. Satellite
a ship in a fan wave which makes it altimeters collect data from the surface of
possible to create a relatively accurate 1964 the sea down to the sea floor.
map of a section of the sea floor.
1969
1963
23

TIMELINE

1970 Skylab, first satellite to carry an altimeter—a
device that measures altitude—launches. This aids
ANGUS, a deep-towed camera sled, the development of the first maps of the seafloor.
takes thousands of high-resolution
photographs of the seafloor during a 1978
single day.

2009 Sentry, an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV),
launches on its first scientific mission. It can explore
Nereus, an unmanned remotely operated craft, the ocean down to 3.7 miles (6,000 m) deep.
ventures into the Challenger Deep. The Nereus is
2008
a hybrid of an autonomous drone and a remote
controlled ROV. Filmmaker James Cameron reaches the seabed
in the Mariana Trench’s Challenger Deep in the
Eye in the Sea, a camera invented by Edie
Widder, is installed on the Monterey Accelerated Deepsea Challenger.

Research System (MARS) on the ocean floor to 2012
make video observations of deep-sea animals.

The Deep Submergence Vehicle (DSV) Limiting Factor
submarine completes four dives to the bottom of
Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench. DSV Limiting
Factor submarine finds a spot deeper in the Mariana
Trench than ever found before.

2019

24

1985 Jason, a remotely operated vehicle (ROV)
system designed by Woods Hole Oceanographic
Institution, gives scientists access to the seafloor

without leaving the deck of a ship.

1988

Argo, an unmanned deep-towed Worldwide mapping of the seafloor from space
undersea video camera sled developed significantly enhances accuracy over earlier
through Woods Hole Oceanographic images of the ocean basin.
Institute’s Deep Submergence The Autonomous Benthic Explorer (ABE), a
Laboratory, finds the wreck of the free-swimming robot, a new kind of deep-
RMS Titanic. The towed sled, capable
of operating depths at of 20,000 feet submergence vehicle, launches. Unconnected
(6,000 meters), brings 98 percent of to a surface ship and not occupied by people,
the ocean floor within reach.
ABE can survey wide swaths of undersea
2005 territory on dives that last up to a day.

1995

Autonomous underwater robots that
can “think” on their own explore

places we can’t get to. These robots
may not require continuous contact
with engineers so they can explore
more remote recesses of the seafloor.

Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI) makes data
from the seas and seafloor accessible 24 hours
a day, seven days a week to anyone with an
internet connection.

2013 2016

Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Seabed 2030 launches with the text © 2019 by Peg Lopata
Institute deploys benthic event goal to map the entire floor of the
detectors, or BEDs, in the upper
part of Monterey Canyon. A BED is a Earth’s oceans by 2030.
“smart boulder”—a motion-sensing
instrument that can be placed on the
canyon floor.
A benthic lander, or untethered free vehicle, named
Audacia deploys on the Atacamex Expedition, allowing
Chilean researchers to make the first observations and
gather samples from the world’s longest trench, the
Atacama Trench.

2018 2017

25

Carrie Tillotson

Hands-On IF YOU WERE A DEEP-SEA DWELLER

MATCH ANIMALS WITH THEIR ADAPTATIONS!

WHAT IF ONE DAY YOU WOKE UP AT THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA? You’d face some serious survival challenges.
Challenges like navigating pitch-black waters, hunting for scarce food, enduring extreme cold, and withstanding
crushing pressure. What adaptations might you need to survive?

Try on the adaptations below to see what life might be like as a deep-sea dweller. Then match each adaptation with
a real deep-sea animal. Many creatures use these features to survive and thrive in the deep. (Answers are on page 46.)

IF YOU WERE A DEEP-SEA DWELLER, YOU MIGHT . . .

1 . . . be bioluminescent: If you were bioluminescent, you could escape deep-sea predators

with your alarm system. When a predator approaches, you could put on a flashy show. Your
display would distract and scare off bigger animals—or attract the attention of something that’s
more interested in eating your enemy than you. That predator would never bother you again!

2 . . . be giant: If you were a deep-sea giant, you might grow i-n-c-r-e-d-i-b-l-y slowly. The

extreme cold of the deep would slow your body’s processes. Slow growth to adulthood would
mean you’d live longer. And you’d grow bigger and bigger. Even bigger than all your friends and
relatives!

3 . . . be invisible: If your body had reddish coloring, you could disappear into the depths. At

the sea’s surface, you would appear red. Your skin would reflect red light from the sun. But red
light does not penetrate the deep sea. At these depths, no red light would be available for your
skin to reflect. You could swim about, blending in with the blackness around you.

4 . . . be collapsible: If you had collapsible lungs, you could dive deep without worrying
5
about pressure changes. At the ocean’s surface, the weight of the air pushes on you with the
pressure of one atmosphere. But 3,280 feet (1,000 m) down, the pressure is equal to about
100 atmospheres. Imagine 100 elephants stacked and standing on top of you. That pressure is
a problem for animals with bodies containing pockets of air. It can cause organs like lungs to
rupture. But if you had collapsible lungs, you could dive deep, no problem!

. . . be a scavenger: If you were a deep-sea scavenger, your meals might be few and far

between. You would have to make the most of what little food drifts your way. But sometimes
feasts as large as a dead whale would fall to the seafloor. To fill your appetite, you may need new
eating habits, like feasting on the remains of enormous mammals!

26

AVAMPIRE SQUID B ZOMBIE WORMS

A vampire squid is not a true squid. Nor is it an Zombie worms don’t eat brains. They eat bones.
octopus. This squid-relative’s reddish-brown color Larvae drift through the ocean until they find
keeps it concealed from predators as it swims whale carcasses. Then they burrow their roots into
through the inky black waters of the deep. the bones. But zombie worms have no mouths or
stomachs. Instead, an acid they produce dissolves
C ATOLLA JELLY fat and oils inside the bone. Bacteria in the worms’
roots digest the fat and oils. Scientists aren’t sure
how the worms get nutrients from the bacteria. But
one thing’s certain: this is one strange food fad!

D GIANT ISOPOD

An Atolla jelly has a unique defense mechanism— You may have seen the giant isopod’s well-known
a built-in alarm system. When a predator attacks, land relatives in your backyard—pill bugs. Pill
the jellyfish flashes a brilliant display of pulsing bugs are only about as long as your fingernail. But
lights. The lights attract the attention of larger a giant isopod can grow as long as your forearm.
nearby predators. These larger predators then
ambush the earlier attacker, and the jellyfish What one word
makes a hasty getaway. would you use

E CUVIER’S BEAKED WHALE to describe
yourself, Cate?

Adaptable!

The Cuvier’s beaked whale has earned a top honor Carrie Tillotson is not a deep-sea dweller, but she is a writer and text © 2019 by Carrie Tillotson
among all ocean dwellers: deepest diver. It has certified scuba diver. She once saw an eagle ray and puffer fish while
been recorded diving to nearly 3,000 meters deep. diving and would love to one day travel in a submersible.
How does it do it? Scientists think Cuvier’s beaked
whales have a collapsible rib cage. When they dive 27
deep, the ribs collapse, flattening the lungs, and
expelling nearly all the air.

by Catherine Brown Shimmer by Rebecca
Rutstein is almost as
tall as a seven-story
building.

Artists at Sea
ILLUMINATING THE MYSTERIES OF OCEAN SCIENCE

At the Georgia Museum beauty [and] complexity of the deep Artist-at-Sea program. There she
of Art, visitors can ocean,” she says. joined scientists on the Research
experience being Vessel (R/V) Falkor’s sonar mapping
submerged in the Exploring New Frontiers expedition from southern Vietnam
deep sea. to the island of Guam and on an
The large installation there by For centuries, artists have accompanied expedition on the R/V Atlantis off
artist and ocean explorer Rebecca explorers to depict new discoveries. the coast of Costa Rica.
Rutstein has steel hexagonal shapes When the famed Captain Cook traveled
inspired by hydrocarbon structures to the Pacific Ocean in the late 1700s, Artists Who
found in the Guaymas Basin in for instance, he brought along several Love Science
the Gulf of California. Rutstein artists. Some sacrificed their lives in
explored the basin with marine their quest to visually represent a world Both Artist-at-Sea programs have
scientist Samantha Joye. LED lights few from home would ever see. provided opportunities for many
change as visitors move through the artists to accompany scientists and
space. These changing, shimmering As scientists explore a new frontier crew along deep-sea expeditions.
lights represent the siphonophore, today—the deep ocean—many are The Schmidt Ocean Institute alone
a bioluminescent organism that bringing artists working in a variety of has had 32 participants since 2016,
separates when disturbed, creating media to visually interpret and share fostering cooperation between artists
flashes of light that can be seen when their findings. and scientists. “The artists participate
entering the water column during like the science party, conducting
the more than 7,000-foot (2,200-m) Rutstein is one of many artists to science and collaborating with them,”
descent into the deep sea. explore the ocean with scientists. In says Carlie Wiener of Schmidt Ocean
addition to working with Joye, she Institute. “It’s inspiring for the artists,
Very few people will experience has explored the deep sea with the and it inspires the scientists to be
this type of bioluminescence in real Ocean Exploration Trust’s Science more creative.”
life, and that’s exactly why Rutstein Communication Fellow program
created the installation. “I’m trying aboard the Exploration Vehicle (E/V) The Institute doesn’t require
to share places and processes hidden Nautilus in a mapping expedition artists to have extensive background
from view to connect people with the from the Galapagos Islands to in the sciences but rather a passion
California. She also participated for learning. “We look for artists who
28 with the Schmidt Ocean Institute’s

are interested in communicating
about oceans and want to learn
about scientific processes and
data,” says Wiener. That describes
Rutstein, who took classes in geology
in college and considers herself an
enthusiast rather than a scientist.

Artists Depicting
Scientists

Karen Romano Young, a children’s
book author and illustrator, has
traveled with the E/V Nautilus as
well as on expeditions to Antarctica.
At times she considered becoming a
scientist, but she knew she would
miss writing and art too much.
Instead, she uses words and
pictures to teach kids about ocean
science. “Of the 28 people on a ship,
only eight to ten are scientists or
graduate students studying science,”
Young says. “If you’re passionate
about ocean science, you can find
your own way in.”

While participating in research
cruises, Young draws the vessel and
its equipment to try to understand
how it all works. “I could draw and
start to learn about it and then sit
down with the engineer and ask
him what everything is,” she says.
She spent much of her time creating
detailed drawings of the vessel,
equipment—including Hercules, the
remotely operated vehicle aboard
the Nautilus—scientists, and crew on
a long piece of paper taped down on

On a research cruise, Karen Romano Young drew
the vessel and its equipment.

29

Adam Swanson painted
activities aboard the
R/V Falkor.

the counter. Those illustrations were the vessel and even took part in 100 paintings. Twenty-nine were white,
used as outreach to educate the helping collect and record data. “In which represented dry land. Seventy-
general public on the expeditions some cases, I mixed sea mud into my one were blue to represent the ocean,
and for conferences about deep-sea very paint to create the lively texture and only a few incorporated maps. “I
science. In 2021, they will appear in and color of the ocean floor,” says wanted a simple way to visualize that
Young’s nonfiction graphic novel Swanson. single fact.”
Deep Sea Dragons.
Artists Teaching Art can represent data in both
Painter Adam Swanson About Science simple and complex ways. When
accompanied the R/V Falkor for scientific illustrator and fiber
several weeks as a Schmidt Artist- When Lizzy Taber completed her artist Michelle Schwengel-Regala
at-Sea participant in 2018, when a voyage aboard the R/V Falkor, she traveled from Honolulu to Tahiti
robot cruised the ocean floor looking couldn’t stop thinking about how on board R/V Falkor, the scientists
for methane plumes. Swanson set scientists have mapped less than 10 were collecting water samples
up a small studio space in the wet percent of the ocean floor. The oceans from oxygen-deficient zones to
lab, where, as he says, “researchers cover 71 percent of the planet, so that better understand biogeochemical
were consistently swirling around.” means much of the planet has yet to be processes there. After seeing the data
Swanson created eight paintings mapped. When Taber returned to her on graphs on computer screens in
of the activity happening on board studio, she created an installation with the ship’s Control Room, Schwengel-
Regala decided to visualize it using
30 knitting and embroidery techniques.

For her “data textile” series,
Schwengel-Regala knit flat
squares and embroidered graphs
representing water temperatures,
oxygen levels, and light levels at
various depths to compare the

Lizzie Taber’s installation of 100 paintings shows
how much of the ocean has yet to be mapped.

differences between water columns Schwengel-Regala. “These sculptures
at each location. help us visualize the amount of each
‘invisible’ thing being measured,
Because the researchers all from a seemingly clear sample
frequently talked about “wire of water.”
time”—the sessions when the
ship would stop at a location and Schwengel-Regala’s works were
send water-sampling equipment displayed at the 2017 Honolulu
into the water using a long wire— Biennial. When two scientists from
Schwengel-Regala created a series her voyage saw her first sculpture,
of 3D sculptures using aluminum they immediately identified the exact
wire as the yarn. “This large-scale location from which the researchers
wire knitting was a novel technique on the Falkor collected samples based
I developed only because of the on her knitted data.
Artist-at-Sea experience,” explains
31

Michelle Schwengel-Regala visualized water as communicators that scientists WH[W ŕ E\ &DWKHULQH %URZQ
sample data using knitting and embroidery. can’t necessarily fill,” Rutstein
explains. “The deep sea is obscure
Why Do Scientists and magical. I hope to transport
Need Artists? the viewer through visual and
immersive experiences.”
With videography and photography
so accessible, why do scientists need Artists can help reveal these
artists on board an exploratory or hidden worlds, as Rutstein did
research vessel? Can’t they just in Shimmer, or present data in
take photos? compelling ways, as Schwengel-
Regala did in her knitted works.
Yes, but, as Young explains, artists They can help audiences learn and
can do what photographs can’t: reveal care about what they are unable to
all the details and find the story. “I see in real life. “Since humans are
couldn’t always see into the shadows visually oriented creatures, seeing
when taking photographs for later science-themed art can be a bridge
work,” she says. “With drawing, I to spark interest in the natural
can illuminate the shadows, pull world,” says Schwengel-Regala.
something out and make it clear,
highlight relationships, and take It’s not just about artists
things out that don’t matter.” communicating scientists’
thoughts and research, though. The
Because artists can find the collaboration can work both ways.
story, they can help communicate Samantha Joye, the marine scientist
scientific knowledge in remarkable who collaborated with Rutstein,
ways. “Artists have an amazing role talked about the benefits she gets
from working with Rutstein in an
article published by the University
of Georgia: “I knew she would
‘see’ things I didn’t because she
has a different frame of reference.
Experiencing the deep sea with her
made me shift my reference point;
it opened my eyes and generated a
different experience.”

Both artists and scientists have
unique perspectives on the world
that can inform one another. Both
constantly ask questions while
innovating and creating. “Although
the end products created by artists
and scientists can be very different,
both seek to understand the world
around them. Art and science is the
most magical connection there is,”
says Taber.

Writer Catherine Brown ğQGV WKH LGHD RI
H[SORULQJ WKH GHHS VHD ERWK H[KLODUDWLQJ
DQG WHUULI\LQJ %HFDXVH VKH OLNHO\ ZLOO QHYHU
DFFRPSDQ\ VFLHQWLVWV RQ D GHHS VHD
H[SHGLWLRQ VKH DSSUHFLDWHV WKDW WKHVH
DUWLVWV DUH DEOH WR FRQYH\ WKH H[SHULHQFH
LQ VXFK FRPSHOOLQJ ZD\V

BY LIZZIE WADE

Q&A

Q: During childhood, hard substance called enamel,
explains Mark Springer, a
Why do we get A it can feel like biologist at the University of
a second set of : everything is California, Riverside. Enamel
teeth but not growing. Your bones is what makes teeth strong
a second set of are getting longer, enough to chew tough stuff
bones or hair? without breaking. But unlike
your body is getting taller, and bones and hair, enamel doesn’t
—Mila N., age 11 even your feet are getting bigger grow or change. And while your
so quickly that you need a new baby teeth might be the right
I was wondering pair of shoes every few months. size for the head of, well, a baby,
what my baby teeth That’s why you never need they aren’t big enough to fill
looked like and asked my replacements for most of your up an adult mouth. The only
mom if she’d saved any parts: they grow to fit you. And solution is to replace them with
of them. Her answer? even after you stop changing a whole new set of teeth—one
size, your bones are still able to fit for a grown-up.
“EWWWW.” repair themselves in case you
So should I not break them. (Hair never stops —Lizzie
ask about locks of growing, which is why you need
to trim it once in a while.) Have any questions?
baby hair? Send them to Muse Q&A,
But there’s one part of your 70 E. Lake St., Suite 800,
body that doesn’t join in this
extended growth spurt: your Chicago, IL 60601,
teeth. They stay the same size or email them to
while the rest of you grows [email protected].
around them. That’s because
your teeth are covered in a 33

Underwater
video reveals

secret life
of sea turtles

by Susan Hunnicutt

T he video showed sea turtles chasing and
biting. They were nudging and nuzzling
each other too. No one was more surprised
WKDQ WKH VFLHQWLVWV ZKR ğOPHG WKHP :K\"
Because sea turtles have always been
thought to be loners. Turns out, these ocean reptiles
may not be total party animals, but they do like to check
each other out sometimes.

34

text © 2019 by Susan Hunnicutt 35

GO> TurtleCam Technology

See for Yourself TurtleCam is a dive camera. It is
Search “Seeing Through waterproof to 820 feet (250 m),
which is in the diving range of a
the Eyes of a Sea green sea turtle. (Picture the
Turtle!” on YouTube to length of two football fields tipped
watch footage from the sideways underwater.)

back of a sea turtle. The camera is not heavy enough
to interfere with the turtle’s ability
to swim. It weighs a little less than
a full can of soda. It is very rugged
and can withstand a lot of bumps
and scrapes.

A fast-drying epoxy, a type of
glue, holds the camera in place.
The camera is fastened to the shell
using metal links that react with
sea water and corrode within a few
hours. Once the metal link has
corroded completely, it breaks off
and the camera floats to the
surface.

When the camera is on, it not
only takes video, but also records
depth and temperature. Scientists
can tell how turtles behave in
different environmental conditions
with this data.

Marine biologists was enough food for all the turtles as if they’re giving a hug. Sometimes
search for green sea that lived around the island. But he the turtles are kind of pushy, nipping
turtles in shallow learned far more than that. or bumping into one another.
coastal waters.
Cool Discovery Robinson says he’ll need to collect
Marine biologist Nathan Robinson a lot more data to explain exactly
studies juvenile green sea turtles in Yes, the turtles were foraging for what this turtle behavior means. But
the Bahamas. He designed and built food. But each video also shows them he and other scientists who look at
a camera that fits on a sea turtle’s interacting. Sometimes they rub up the video footage think one of the
shell. He calls it TurtleCam and uses against one another in a friendly way reasons might be that the turtles are
it to record the animals’ underwater protecting their territory.
activity. At first, he wanted to use the
footage to find out what they were Animals are known to be protective
eating. Robinson wondered if there of their favorite spots to eat or rest.
They can be forceful in how they react.
36 One turtle might be chomping on a
patch of tasty sea grass when another
comes along and pushes it away. The
other turtle doesn’t always fight back.
TurtleCam has also shown turtles
taking naps. Sometimes they squeeze
themselves under rocks or ledges to
just hang out or rest. Another turtle
might see the spot and come over and
knock the first one out of the ledge
and then rest in the spot.

Robinson has also experimented
with sending out cameras on two turtles
at the same time. Each of these videos
has shown one turtle looking at the
other. Sometimes they just stare at on
one another, then swim away. When

Nathan Robinson and his team Release and Recover
attach a TurtleCam. It will record
from the wild sea turtle’s shell for When they release the turtle, the
several hours. scientists turn on a radio transmitter
built onto the camera. It stays on the
you watch this footage, you get the feeling Sea turtles are strong, fast whole time the camera is active. A radio
you’re riding on the back of their shell. swimmers. They bob and weave, zig receiver on the boat picks up a small
and zag, dash and dart. The fastest signal from the TurtleCam every time
way for a diver to keep up is to use the turtle is at the surface.
the crawl stroke. When the swimmer
has their body above the turtle, they The camera pops off after three
wait for it to come up for air, then or four hours. Robinson puts on a
reach out and grab hold at the base of set of headphones connected to the
the front flippers. They hold on tight, radio receiver. He waits until he hears
until they can hand the turtle to a a beeping signal from TurtleCam’s
teammate in the boat. transmitter as it bobs around. The
radio receiver helps them to find the
Before attaching TurtleCam, the camera’s exact location.
team cleans and dries the shell with
a towel. Robinson fastens the camera When they spot the camera, they
to the turtle’s shell. The rest of the drive right over to it, reach over the
team measures the animal, records side of the boat and grab TurtleCam
its weight, and checks the flippers for as it floats on the surface of the water.
identification tags. Once they’ve picked up the camera,
they go back home and watch sea turtle
Rodeo Round-up Fast Facts reality TV. They can see exactly what the
turtle’s been up to.
The first step to using TurtleCam A turtle’s shell is called a carapace
is to find and catch a turtle. The and its underside is the plastron. Try, Try Again
turtle is often hand-captured using a
method the crew calls a “rodeo.” They There are seven species of sea Robinson experimented with
take a boat to the shallow coastal turtles. Green sea turtles can be TurtleCam many times before he
waters where green sea turtles look found worldwide, in tropical and tried it out on a turtle. He used an old
for seagrass. Then they keep their subtropical waters. pool noodle to make the floatation
eyes peeled until a turtle swims by. for the first camera. “With lots of
Green turtles can hold their breath Green sea turtles aren’t green. brainstorming and trial and error, we
underwater for hours at a time, so it can They get their name from the green kept improving our design until we
take a long time to spot one. When they fat in their bodies. were happy with it and were ready to
see a turtle, they follow it across the use it on turtles.”
water. Chasing the turtles by boat tires Very few sea turtles live to
them out, making them easier to catch. adulthood. Some say only one in The current TurtleCam floats are
Robinson or one of his team members 1,000 survives, some say one in old foam-buoys that have been found
gear up for a turtle rodeo with their 10,000! washed up on the beach. “What better
masks, snorkels, and fins. Then they way to clean local beaches than to
jump in the water. A sea turtle can live as long as a pick up waste and use it in research
human. projects that help protect endangered
animals,” says Robinson.
Marine biologists can also track
sea turtle migration patterns using Learning about the secret
satellites. A satellite transmitter is underwater life of sea turtles will help
attached to the turtle’s shell. scientists understand ways to help
Orbiting satellites follow them as these ocean animals live longer and
they swim through the water. keep their habitats healthy. Now, grab
a bowl of popcorn, and take a turn
watching turtle TV!

Susan Hunnicutt is an eco-volunteer who
has been on several sea turtle research
expeditions. She’s caught eight turtles
rodeo-style and thinks wrangling reptiles
in the name of science is pretty cool.

37

BY NICK D’ALTO NIC McDOUGAL

Do the Math

text © 2019 by Nick D’Alto, art © 2019 by Nic McDougal

CAN YOU STAND
THE PRESSURE?

Math at the ocean floor The Mysterious Force presses against everything—
What is this force that threatens including you.
Using the amazing technology humans but doesn’t seem to bother
of scuba, a highly trained diver deep-sea creatures? It’s pressure. You normally don’t notice
descends into the ocean deep. It’s the force of ocean water, which this pressure because your
At a depth of 33 feet (10 m), the bears down the deeper you go. body simply pushes back. But
“squeezing” force on our elite diver’s But you already know about this. barometers notice it. These
body is already double what it was at Because you also live in a kind of instruments predict the weather
the surface. This compressing force “ocean,” too—an ocean of air. by “weighing” the air. Like the
keeps increasing. At 985 feet (300 sea creatures that live on the
m), the hull of a Navy submarine Think about it. Like water, the ocean floor, you live at the
must be constructed from solid steel air around you presses against bottom of your ocean of air—at
plate, a couple inches thick, to stand everything it touches. And like maximum pressure. But climb
the strain. Yet there are creatures water, air has weight. A column up a mountain, or fly in a jet,
of the sea that can descend much of air, 1 inch (2.5 cm) square and there’s less air above you. So
farther than this with ease. Down to and rising up to the top of the there’s less pressure. Careful, your
the deepest abyss. atmosphere, weighs around 15 ears might pop.
pounds (7 kg). Scientists call this
“one atmosphere” of pressure. It The ocean of water works the
same way. Except water is nearly

38

a thousand times heavier than air. Depth in meters/10 = Ocean pressure in atmospheres
So compared to air pressures, ocean
pressures are much higher. Just 30 200 meters
feet (about 10 m) of water exerts Above this depth, most
the same pressure (or “weighs as
much”) as the entire atmosphere. sea life flourishes.
Then the next 30 feet weighs one
atmosphere more. 1,000 meters
This depth is within what’s
Here is the called the Bathyal zone. It’s
formula: where sunlight can no longer
Ocean pressure penetrate the water. Below this
in atmospheres = point, the ocean is dark. Plant
Depth in meters/10 growth stops. Bioluminescent
species appear. What’s the
That’s important math. It
describes how the deep ocean pressure here?
feels, compared to the world we
know. And it explains a lot. Why 4,500 meters
do creatures of the deep look The Alvin, a famed
so strange? And why must we underwater research
humans use such extraordinary submersible, dove this deep.
technologies to enter the deep Find the pressure its titanium
ourselves? It’s all about the hull must withstand. Then
pressure. multiply that by .0075. That’s
the force on each square inch
Using This Idea of the sub—in tons!
We’ve depicted a depth line from
the ocean’s surface down to its 6,000 meters
floor. As we descend along it, let’s This is the beginning of the
apply our formula to calculate deepest zone of the ocean.
ocean pressures at each point. Squid and starfish live here.
You can enter your answers on the What pressure do they feel?
illustration. (That’s right, you’re
going to complete this page!) Your And Even Deeper
results may surprise you. Answers Don’t forget the trenches in
are on page 46. the ocean bottom, including
the Mariana at 11,000 meters!
As a student, author Nick D’Alto Incredibly, life persists here—
actually got to meet Jacques Cousteau
and hear him describe his undersea at what pressure?
adventures. It was as if this great
explorer had seen another world. And
in a way, he had.

ONE MORE CHALLENGE!

Space probes have measured the surface pressure on the planet Venus at a crushing 100
atmospheres. Using our formula, that corresponds to what ocean depth? Mark it on your
depth line. See, the deep ocean really is “another world!”

39

Cave divers are helping us discover the ancient past.

40

by Steve Murray n ancient times, people used living organisms and chemicals to
caves as shelters. When they damage cave contents. Without wind,
moved, they often left things waves, or strong currents to move
behind. Animals used caves for things around, underwater caves
hold clues to how early humans lived.
Ishelter, too, and left their bones They’re just waiting for scientists to
inside when they died. Many find them.
of these remains were organic,
such as wood tools and animal hides, An Ice Age Time Capsule
and seldom lasted very long after time
and weather destroyed or scattered Most of the porous limestone caves
them. Finding organic artifacts beneath Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula
has always been a challenge for are filled with water. Divers have
archaeologists and paleontologists. been working for many years to map
them. In 2007, three divers—Alberto
About 12,000 years ago, warming Nava, Alex Alvarez, and Franco
temperatures melted much of the Attolini—entered a huge underwater
world’s glacier ice. Sea levels rose chamber, now named Hoyo Negro
about 360 feet (110 m), and many (“Black Hole”), and made a discovery
caves were flooded. Cold, still water that would change our understanding
can preserve and protect organic of ancient peoples in the Americas.
materials in caves by keeping people “We discovered it somewhat by luck,”
and animals out. This water often has says Nava. “We were just exploring a
very little oxygen, so there are fewer tunnel and all of a sudden we came
up into this big pit.” Hoyo Negro was
more than 200 feet (62 m) wide and
its floor was 150 feet (47 m) below
sea level. It had been formed by the
collapse of limestone where three
underwater tunnels came together.
The chamber contained the remains
of large, now-extinct animals . . . and
a human skull.

41

Different kinds of animals prefer things and sharing them with me. As have to rely on measuring lines and
different climate and vegetation. a professional archaeologist, I could compasses to swim through the dark,
Some, for example, prefer deep forest, help them better understand what winding tunnels. Sometimes they also
while others prefer marshes or thorny they found. use underwater scooters to travel
scrub. Studying these animal bones further in their limited diving time.
can therefore tell scientists a lot “When a group of divers shared
about the Yucatán environment in photographs of Hoyo Negro with me, Back in 2007, the trip to Hoyo
prehistoric times. Scientists believe I knew immediately that they had Negro was long. “When we originally
the animals walked into the dark discovered something incredibly found the chamber,” says Nava, “it was
tunnel entrances when the land was important.” The group began to about 3,000 feet (915 m) away from an
still dry and fell almost 100 feet (30 m) document the contents of Hoyo Negro entrance. That’s about an hour swim
into the pit. They were either killed by and to collect some of the specimens underwater. We came back the next
the fall or unable to climb out. for study. It was a long, painstaking job. day with scooters, which reduced our
swim to about 20 minutes.”
The explorers’ first concern was A Special Way
how to protect their discovery. “We of Exploring The technical skill required for
didn’t tell anybody about it for the diving like this is why many caves
next two years,” says Nava. “We Cave diving requires advanced
wanted to keep it secret because training and a lot of practice. “It’s
there was no way to protect these a dangerous activity, so you’ve got
finds.” Eventually, however, they told to learn gradually,” says Nava, who
Dominique Rissolo, an underwater instructs scuba divers in these special
archaeologist with the University of skills. “Prior to finding Hoyo Negro, I
California, San Diego. probably had 10 years of cave diving
experience.”
“I’ve been working on the Yucatán
peninsula for over 25 years,” says When divers explore a cave, they
Rissolo, “and I got to know many often don’t know how far it goes, so
people who were exploring submerged they carry extra air tanks and carefully
caves. They were discovering amazing watch their air supply. GPS navigation
systems don’t work in caves, so divers

42

haven’t yet been explored. Deep dives Ebifxntemrthptoimoeoalmosknotrehesroinseedufgoetrdohreuicpfepdenafmaiidscvcntheuetarodrelwtm-fmesttapcebhptitneeaethrinnrlnssit.ce,gdiaBsaewdvtunsseeitdct.ssehsttnceiihnandcanraitne-tgs
require slow, controlled ascents
back to the surface. The goal of these
safe ascents is decompression—a
process where divers carefully breathe
out nitrogen gas. “Our dives take
about four hours” says Nava. “The
floor of the pit is about 150 feet (46
m) down, so all our dives require
decompression. Most of the time, we
work between 90 minutes and 2 hours
on the bottom, and then we have two
hours to decompress on the way up.”

The artifacts that the divers have
recovered have shed new light on

The human
skull belonged
to a girl who
died between
12,000 and
13,000 years
ago. Scientists
named her
“Naia.”

life in the ancient Yucatán. The team
has found bones from the saber-
toothed tiger, a gomphothere (an
ancient elephant-like species), and
a new species of giant ground sloth.
Scientists believe that these animals
became extinct about 12,000 years
ago, at the end of the Pleistocene
epoch.

The human skull they found
belonged to a girl, and divers were
later able to find most of her skeleton.
Scientists named her “Naia” after
the ancient Greek Naiads, or water
nymphs. She was 15 or 16 years
old and almost 5 feet (148 cm) tall.
Scientists calculated that she died
between 12,000 and 13,000 years ago,
long before the Maya civilization

44

lived in the region. In fact, her DNA a detailed copy of the site in case to our campus,” says Rissolo, “and
showed that she was Beringian—from anything is disturbed.” The team uses take ‘virtual dives’ in Hoyo Negro
people who came across the land photogrammetry, a tool that blends all the time. We actually discovered
bridge between modern-day Russia large numbers of photographs into three new animals in the cave just by
and Canada in Paleolithic times. This three-dimensional digital maps. “Most exploring it this way. Visualization
makes Naia one of the oldest human researchers aren’t divers,” says Nava. like this is really changing the way
skeletons ever found in the Americas. “With photogrammetry, we can bring that we do science.”
the site out to them. Then, they can
Sharing the Knowledge study it all on a computer, without Always More to Find
even getting wet.”
It’s difficult to guard Hoyo Negro, And with an estimated 6,000 water-
and the site is vulnerable to damage Engineers working with the Hoyo filled caves throughout the region,
or theft. But Rissolo, Nava, and Negro team have even created virtual there’s more to find. “So far, people
their team have a high-tech plan reality models of the cave so that have mapped 800 miles (1,290 km) of
for preserving it. “We capture it experts can explore it as if they were underwater passages in the Yucatán
all in 3D,” says Nava, “so we have actually there. “We bring scientists peninsula,” said Nava, “and the
estimate is that there’s at least twice
Diver Alberto Nava that much remaining to explore.”
views a virtual
reality model of There’s a whole lifetime of
Hoyo Negro. VR adventures still left on the Yucatán
lets archaeologists Peninsula, waiting for future diver-
study this remote, scientists to explore them.
underwater site.

Steve Murray is a freelance science writer. text © 2019 by Steve Murray
A former research engineer, he now covers
space science, archaeology, and the
environment.

45

CONTEST

NEW CONTEST ANNOUNCING —PARKER G. / Idaho
“This drone can make you a
Undersea 3D CONTEST WINNERS! taco with anything in it, even ice
Unmanned aerial vehicles cream! All you need to do is type
When it comes to underwater helped manage wildfires in in what you want (for example
adventures, do you prefer a human- the July/August 2019 issue. type cheeseburger) and you get it
occupied vehicle (HOV), like Alvin? We asked readers to show in taco form.”
Or are you a fan of robots like off their own creative
remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) drones. These winners are u“sI ew—sofiuCnlHddAiunYIswgLeAolmouPsly.td/dpaarelogsoneope1lde0fooi/nrtrKpniacoeknlesiscd.a”e.s
and autonomous underwater on the up-and-up! —“bmIsprSstooauhAtsrfahNesfre.teDoIrh.fRtaatIhOenNpinnlihSatkteey.hhn/dMaedMnoaosearhnissSoees,waaadKickntoahscdreuhtososn8,wewetiDmnatthseryanlmunamxcyoeconoarlueinlnoett.”
vehicles (AUVs)? Choose your
favorite type of underwater RUNNERS-UP
vehicle—or invent your own—and
create a 3D model using any Honorable Mention
material. Maybe you’ll use clean Delilah, age 10, Arizona; Jordan, age 9,
recyclables or Lego bricks, modeling California; Olivia B., age 11, California; and
clay or papier-mâché—the choice is Tasneem A.K., age 9, Texas.
yours. Send a photo of your
stupendous submarine sculpture,
along with its name and research
mission. We can’t wait to dive into
your submissions!

CONTEST RULES
1. Your contest entry must be your
very own original work. Ideas and
words should not be copied.

2. Be sure to include your name, age,
and full address on your entry.

3. Only one entry per person, please.

4. If you want your work returned,
enclose a self-addressed, stamped
envelope.

5. All entries must be signed by a
parent or legal guardian, saying
that this is your own work and
no help was given and granting
permission to publish. For detailed
information about our compliance
with the Children’s Online Privacy
Protection Act, visit the policy page
at cricketmedia.com/privacy.

6. Your entry must be received by
January 31, 2020. We will publish
winning entries in the April 2020
issue of Muse.

7. Send entries to Muse Contest,
70 E. Lake St., Suite 800, Chicago, IL
60601 or via email to
[email protected].
If entering a digital photo
or scan, please send at 300 dpi.

ANSWERS

PAGES 6–9 MUSE NEWS
Muse News False Story “Sea Cucumbers Have a New Cousin”

PAGES 26–27 HANDS-ON
1. C; 2. D; 3. A; 4. E; 5. B

PAGES 38–39 DO THE MATH
20, 100, 450, 600, 1,100 atmospheres; 1,000 meters

46

BY KATHRYN HULICK

Your Tech

SHOULD WE MINE THE Do we dare corals, and other animals have
DEEP SEA? disturb this not moved back in. That means
universe? mining could have harmful,
A ROBOT the size of a large bulldozer creeps along the bottom long-lasting consequences for
of the deep sea. It slurps up chunks of metallic rock and soft deep ocean life. Scientists want
mud. The stuff travels up a long tube to a ship, where workers to understand the deep sea
and machinery separate out the rock and dump the mud back better before disturbing it.
into the ocean. This is a mining operation. The rock contains
a mixture of metals, including ones called rare earth metals. Leaving the deep sea alone
People use these materials to make batteries, magnets, and sounds great, but people need
electronics like computers and phones. those metals. “Mines on land are
soon going to run out,” geologist
Deep sea mining hasn’t happened yet. But it probably will Steven Scott of the University
occur within the next decade. No country owns any part of the of Toronto told Smithsonian
deep sea. So an organization called the International Seabed magazine. “Every electronic
Authority (ISA) decides who is allowed to mine there. The ISA device in the world has rare
has allowed 29 organizations to explore the deep sea and make earth [metals] in it . . . we need
plans for mining. One company plans to begin mining in the raw resources.” New energy
year 2027. technologies, including solar
and wind power and electric
Scientists and environmentalists, though, warn that mining cars, rely on these metals as
could destroy deep-sea ecosystems. In 1989, the ecologist well. We may need to mine them
Hjalmar Thiel conducted a test. His team raked the seafloor from the sea in order to switch
of the Pacific Ocean, in a spot with lots of the metallic rocks to greener energy sources.
that miners want. They didn’t actually collect any of the rocks.
But they disturbed the mud, just as a mining operation would. What do you think? Is new
The plume of mud fell back down over the ocean floor, burying technology important enough
creatures living there. As of 2015, the area they disturbed had to disturb the deep sea? Or
not recovered. The signs of raking are still there. Sponges, should we leave this mysterious
world alone?

47