Arctic Gakkel Vents (AGAVE) 2007 - Meteorological, Oceanographic and Ship Data Collected Onboard Icebreaker Oden

AGAVE was a US-financed project where scientists explored life in the hydrothermal vents from the core of the Earth, which has been found at the Gakkel Ridge, a mountain ridge below the Arctic Ocean.

The expedition was an International Polar Year (IPY) collaboration between scientists from the USA, Sweden, Germany and Japan.

The AGAVE expedition made a number of exciting discoveries on the Gakkel Ridge, and one of the most surprising was the fact that the axial valley at the 85°E segment is blanketed in pyroclastic deposits - the largest unconsolidated deposits ever found on the seafloor (picture 4). These deposits are caused by explosive volcanic eruptions, which many scientists had assumed were impossible in the deep ocean because of the great pressures at such depths. The AGAVE observations turn this idea upside down, and demonstrate that volcanic activity at the 85°E site has been accompanied by the catastrophic discharge of magmatic volatiles. These pyroclastic deposits are being analyzed to determine their age and composition in order to better understand this surprising result. The de

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AGAVE was a US-financed project where scientists explored life in the hydrothermal vents from the core of the Earth, which has been found at the Gakkel Ridge, a mountain ridge below the Arctic Ocean.

The expedition was an International Polar Year (IPY) collaboration between scientists from the USA, Sweden, Germany and Japan.

The AGAVE expedition made a number of exciting discoveries on the Gakkel Ridge, and one of the most surprising was the fact that the axial valley at the 85°E segment is blanketed in pyroclastic deposits - the largest unconsolidated deposits ever found on the seafloor (picture 4). These deposits are caused by explosive volcanic eruptions, which many scientists had assumed were impossible in the deep ocean because of the great pressures at such depths. The AGAVE observations turn this idea upside down, and demonstrate that volcanic activity at the 85°E site has been accompanied by the catastrophic discharge of magmatic volatiles. These pyroclastic deposits are being analyzed to determine their age and composition in order to better understand this surprising result. The deposits were found around a previously unknown chain of volcanoes, which were named the Asgard Chain - Oden, Thor, and Loke, in honor of the outstanding scientific support provided by the officers and crew of IB Oden.

Purpose:

The AGAVE expedition had two sets of complimentary objectives. The scientific objective was to study the geological, chemical, and biological characteristics of volcanic activity and hydrothermal venting on the Gakkel Ridge. The engineering objective was to develop new technologies for deep-sea research in ice-covered oceans. Show less..