New Deep-Sea Pictures: Chimaera, Ten-armed Starfish, More

Sea Star Stunner

Photograph courtesy INDEX-SATAL/NOAA

This ten-armed sea star, or starfish, was spotted by a remotely operated vehicle at a depth of about 880 feet (270 meters) on August 2. Most starfish species have five arms. (See more sea star pictures.)

The joint U.S.-Indonesian mission represents a "new model of ocean exploration," according to NOAA, since scientists on land and technicians at sea can be connected in real time via satellites and high-speed Internet links on the Okeanos Explorer.

"Seeing these live images from a world away is even more astounding and exciting than I had hoped it would be when we were planning this," NOAA administrator Jane Lubchenco said in a statement. (Related photos: "Dragonfish, Fireworm, More Found by Sea Surveys.")

"Having the ability to connect many scientists representing multiple disciplines to share observations in real time is invaluable."

Published August 31, 2010

Lone Sea Lily

Photograph courtesy INDEX-SATAL/NOAA

Stalked sea lilies like the one above once covered the ocean. But the marine animals are now a rare sight, Verena Tunnicliffe, a deep-ocean scientist at the University of Victoria in British Columbia, Canada, said in a statement. (See pictures of unusual sea creatures.)

"I've only seen a few in my career, but on this expedition, I was amazed to see them in great diversity on nearly every ... dive," said Tunnicliffe, part of a team that observed the expedition from the Exploration Command Center at NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory in Seattle.

(Related blog post: "Sea lilies evolved escape strategy from predators over 200 million years.")

Published August 31, 2010

Sea Robin's Perch

Photograph courtesy INDEX-SATAL/NOAA

The bottom-dwelling sea robin has several sets of specialized fins, including some that allow the fish to swim and others that let it perch on the seafloor.

(See pictures of nine fish with "hands.")

Taken at depths of about 915 feet (279 meters) on August 2, the sea robin picture above is among approximately a hundred thousand new photos and a hundred hours of video footage gathered during the two-month expedition, which lasted from June 23 to August 14.

Published August 31, 2010

"Spectacular" Sea Cucumber

Photograph courtesy INDEX-SATAL/NOAA

A free-swimming sea cucumber moves through the freezing waters of a 10,515-foot (3,205-meter) abyss in a "spectacular" image taken July 27, according to NOAA.

The 1,250 known species of sea cucumbers—named for their distinctive shapes—live on or near deep ocean floors or dwell in the shallows. (Watch a video of a "hairy" sea cucumber.)

When threatened, some sea cucumbers discharge sticky threads to ensnare their enemies.

Others can mutilate their own bodies as a defense mechanism: The animals violently contract their muscles and jettison some of their internal organs out of their anuses. The missing body parts are quickly regenerated.

Published August 31, 2010

Bubblegum Coral

Photograph courtesy INDEX-SATAL/NOAA

A fleshy brittle star winds its arms through a bubblegum coral, as seen in an undated photo from the Okeanos expedition team.

Bubblegum corals are made up of complex, microscopic skeletal structures held together by a sort of organic "cement," according to NOAA. (See more coral pictures.)

Published August 31, 2010

Shrimp on Sponge

Photograph courtesy INDEX-SATAL/NOAA

A long-legged shrimp scuttles on a sponge in an undated photo from the U.S.-Indonesian expedition.

A half mile (0.8 kilometer) deep, the team discovered what first appeared to be a "lovely flower in a garden" (not pictured). But scientists later tagged it as a likely new species of carnivorous sponge, according to NOAA.

(See pictures of new sponges and other "spectacular" species recently found off Canada.)

The newfound sponge appeared to have sticky glass needles that could slowly telescope out to capture food—most likely passing zooplankton.

Published August 31, 2010

Deep-Sea Chimaera

Photograph courtesy INDEX-SATAL/NOAA

The expedition ROV captured this picture of a chimaera, or ghostshark, in the depths off Sulawesi.

Ghostsharks branched off from their closest relatives, sharks, about 400 million years ago, according to NOAA. To detect prey in the dark depths, chimaeras have sensitive electrical receptors on their heads that can pick up changes in other animals' electrical fields.

Some chimaeras' heads also sport more unusual instruments: The recently discovered Eastern Pacific black ghostshark, for instance, has a sex organ sprouting from its forehead.

Published August 31, 2010

Ancient Coral

Photograph courtesy INDEX-SATAL/NOAA

A hard coral spotted on August 5 was found on a seamount about 4,500 feet (1,400 meters) deep.

(Also see "'Brittle Star City' Found on Antarctic Seamount.")

This coral may be between 1,000 and 6,000 years old, according to NOAA.

Published August 31, 2010