The submerged Grand Canyon was first explored. The feat was accomplished off the coast of Australia by an international team that includes Ismar-Cnr. Researchers mapped 4.000 square kilometers in detail, finding lone coral walls and living reefs and colonial coral subfossils.
He is about to end up run over, his mother saves him
Has been first explored the submerged Grand Canyon. The feat was accomplished off the coast of Australia by an international team that includes Ismar-Cnr. The researchers mapped in detail 4.000 square kilometers, uncovering solitary coral walls and living reefs and colonial coral subfossils.
The sampling will allow to better understand the climatic evolution of the oceans. This is the conclusion of the oceanographic campaign of the Falkor ship that he has for the first time visually explored the Perth Canyon, in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Western Australia, noting among other things the presence of living corals and sub fossils. A scientific team that includes the Institute of Marine Sciences of the National Research Council (Ismar-Cnr) of Bologna is carrying out the undertaking.
“We discovered the cdeep solitary oral Desmophyllum dianthus which, in a vertical wall of the Canyon, looks like a sort of wall made up of numerous individuals. The richest associations were identified for the first time between 600 and 1.000 meters deep ", explains Marco Taviani of Ismar-Cnr, who described the geological and biological characteristics of the seabed as the 'Comanche' Rov (Remotely Operated Vehicle) embarked on the Falkor sent live images.
This is a significant find since, the researchers explain, since this species is widespread all over the world, including the Mediterranean Sea, it will allow better understand the geographic distribution of fauna which is hidden in the great sea depths. The laboratory analysis of the Desmophyllum individuals sampled will also provide important data on theclimatic evolution of the oceans, since the limestone skeletons of these corals are authentic archives of the history of the sea.
“Their Mediterranean 'cousins' were revelators of the variation of the temperature and fertility of the sea, providing indications for future scenarios on global warming and the progressive acidification of marine waters ”, adds Paolo Montagna of Ismar-Cnr. “In addition to solitary corals, bushes of red coral have been found, a species different from that encountered in the Mediterranean, and small living reefs and sub-fossils of colonial corals. The dating of fossil corals using the uranium / thorium method will allow us to better understand the evolutionary history of one of the most widespread but unnoticed ecosystems of the entire planet, the coral reefs of great depth ".
The Perth Canyon is one large incision in the Australian continental margin, fifty kilometers from the town of Fremantle. It is approximately the size of the American Grand Canyon, of which it is deeper, reaching up to 4.200 meters, while the surface reaches about 50 meters. The researchers mapped in great detail an area of 4.000 square kilometers.
Roberta Ragni
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