Special: Hydrothermal vents map
HEADING SOUTH
As some researchers push north, others are going south � finding hydrothermal vents on the southern part of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. This is the underwater mountain range that runs like a backbone down the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.
Read more in the Nature special on hydrothermal vents.
Southern Mid-Atlantic Ridge
- Name: Turtle Pits, Red Lion, Wideawake and Liliput
- Characteristics: Boiling fluids spewing out of the vents, of temperatures approaching 400 degrees Celsius.
- Importance: The vents are the southernmost and hottest ever found along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, and give marine scientists an unprecedented look at how creatures living at the vents cope with high-temperature eruptions.