During a recent expedition to the largely unexplored depths of the northern Mid-Atlantic Ridge, marine researchers stumbled upon something odd: tiny holes excavated in the sediment, all arranged in dozens of relatively straight lines.
Roughly a week later, the researchers identified four more sets of the holes around 483 kilometers away, at 1.6 kilometers deep."While the holes look almost human made, the little piles of sediment around them suggest they had been excavated. We attempted but were not able to take a peek into the holes and poke them with the tools on the remotely operated vehicle," theTo add to the mystery, it's not the first time scientists have seen holes like these.
reported on a sighting in the same region that year. The researchers referred to them as"lebensspuren" to describe the holes, which translates to"life traces" in German."The source of the holes or how they were constructed is unknown, but the raised sediment may indicate excavation by an infaunal organism or digging and removal,""None of our closeups showed any sign of living organisms inhabiting the holes.
Since then, we haven't found out much more about the holes, but it's hoped that this mission may provide some answers. As a part of the recent expedition, the researchers were able to sample sediment from around the holes using the submersible's suctioning device in the hopes it may shed light on whether or not something lives in there.
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