9 North Explained

9 North, or Nine North, is a region of hydrothermal vents on the East Pacific Rise in the Pacific Ocean, 900 kilometers off the coast of Acapulco, Mexico; it has been so named by scientists because its latitude is 9°50' N.[1] It was first seen to erupt in 1991 by the deep submersible Alvin during a survey for the Ocean Drilling Program.[2] In November 1999, scientists, students, education specialists, and film crews returned to 9 North to see how the biology and landscape had changed over time. IMAX, National Geographic, and BBC film crews have made videos about the vents at 9 North, most noticeably Volcanoes of the Deep Sea (2003).[3]

BBC Planet Earth series from 2006 reported that 9 North either extinguished or became inactive during the period that BBC was creating the series. All previously extant forms of life- crustaceans (shrimps, crabs) and tube worms- were observed to have disappeared (either died, or left the site), perhaps signalling the extinction of lifeforms unique to these particular vents.

References

Notes and References

  1. Qiu. Jane. Jane Qiu. Oceanography: Death and rebirth in the deep. Nature. 20 May 2010. 465. 7296. 284–286. 10.1038/465284a. 20485410. free.
  2. Lutz. Richard. Shank. Timothy. Evans. Robert. Life After Death in the Deep Sea. American Scientist. 89. 5. 422. 10.1511/2001.5.422. 2001AmSci..89..422L.
  3. Web site: 9 Degrees North. Marine Advanced Technology Education Center. 18 September 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20150103211224/http://archives.marinetech.org/nine_degrees/. 3 January 2015. dead. dmy-all.