FROM THE EDITOR

The deep sea is an alien place. It seems that almost every trip to the ocean floor returns with the discovery of a new creature, structure or process that baffles scientists. That’s because, until now, it’s been too challenging to catalogue everything that’s down there. The extreme pressure means we’re limited to brief visits, and with 71 per cent of the Earth’s surface covered in salt water, there’s a lot of area to cover.

It seems that might all be about to change. A cocktail of new missions and state-of-the-art technology will enable us to explore the ocean like never before. Robotic explorers will chart the ocean floors and its inhabitants, while research tools like environmental DNA will let us monitor biodiversity in totally unprecedented ways. But it’s a race against the clock. Just as the climate crisis disturbs ecosystems above ground, it’s likely to be damaging those beneath the waves too. Plus, the planet’s demand for rare-earth metals and minerals used in modern tech will drive some countries to seek them at the bottom of the ocean, causing irreversible damage. Find out what we might learn in this new, fraught age of oceanic exploration on p52.

If you enjoy this issue, you should check out our podcast Instant Genius, available on your app of choice. Each episode serves up a mini masterclass on a different subject. Coming up, we’re speaking to Dr Katy Munro about migraines, Lee McIntyre about the rise of science denial, and Fyodor Urnov about the potential of gene editing. Come and find us!