A temperature probe from the submersible vehicle Alvin collects data at a low-temperature hydrothermal vent located in a collapse structure in the East Pacific Rise area. The maximum temperatures reached only 9.5°C. This lava flow was erupted within only a few weeks to a few months of this November 2003 expedition. The flow was covered by bacterial mats, had large amounts of bacterial floc issuing from diffuse vents, and was sparsely populated by small animals.

Photo courtesy J.R. Voight, 2003 (Ridge2000, National Science Foundation).

This image is made available under the Creative Commons BY-NC 4.0 license terms.

Galleries: Geothermal Features | Submarine Volcanoes

Keywords: submarine volcano | vent | hydrothermal | field work | technology

Northern EPR at 10.7°N