Authors
Gerhard Bohrmann, Katharina Streuff, Miriam Römer, Stig-Morten Knutsen, Daniel Smrzka, Jan Kleint, Aaron Röhler, Thomas Pape, Nils Rune Sandstå, Charlotte Kleint, Christian Hansen, Christian dos Santos Ferreira, Maren Walter, Gustavo Macedo de Paula Santos, Wolfgang Bach
Publication date
2024/5/3
Journal
Scientific Reports
Volume
14
Issue
1
Pages
10168
Publisher
Nature Publishing Group UK
Description
Oceanic spreading centers north of Iceland are characterized by ultraslow spreading rates, and related hydrothermal activity has been detected in the water column and at the seafloor along nearly all ridge segments. An exception is the 500-km-long Knipovich Ridge, from where, until now, no hydrothermal vents were known. Here we report the investigation of the first hydrothermal vent field of the Knipovich Ridge, which was discovered in July 2022 during expedition MSM109. The newly discovered hydrothermal field, named Jøtul hydrothermal field, is associated with the eastern bounding fault of the rift valley rather than with an axial volcanic ridge. Guided by physico-chemical anomalies in the water column, ROV investigations on the seafloor showed a wide variety of fluid escape sites, inactive and active mounds with abundant hydrothermal precipitates, and chemosynthetic organisms. Fluids with temperatures …