MORE AMAZING DISCOVERIES

Many of the most remarkable finds of recent years have been in our oceans and polar regions.

HYDROTHERMAL VENTS

Huge fissures releasing geothermally heated water were discovered at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean in 1977. These ecosystems were found to be unique because they are fueled not by photosynthesis (light), but by chemosynthesis. Endemic life forms, including bacteria, tubeworms, shrimps and crabs, inhabit these extraordinary environments.

THE COELACANTH

Until one was discovered off South Africa in 1938,

LAKE VOSTOK

Scientists with a coelacanth caught in 2001. coelacanths were believed to have gone extinct 66m years ago. Some scientists have speculated they are the missing link with the group of fish from which land animals evolved, but this is disputed. Buried beneath nearly 4km of Antarctic ice, Lake Vostok has been isolated from the surface for an estimated 15m years. Scientists say there could be 3,500 species – mostly bacteria, but at least 100 multicellular organisms – living in the lake. The conditions have been compared to those likely to exist under the surface of Jupiter’s moon Europa.