Many things on the seabed remain a mystery. NASA is solving this problem.

Shockingly, the depth of the Earth’s ocean is even more unfamiliar than that of scientists moon240,000 miles away space.

But it’s true: using cameras and sensors, Spacecraft has mapped lunar landscape characteristics For decades. At the same time, drawing ocean floors presents its own daunting challenges. The intense water pressure found in the depths of the abyss crushes most equipment, while the seabed is hidden in the water for miles underwater, which absorbs light and becomes opaque. This makes direct observation particularly difficult.

Using new jobs from one data NASA– Leader’s satellites are helping to change that, providing one of the most detailed maps of the world’s ocean bottom ever. The SWOT satellite is abbreviated for surface water and ocean terrain, and is a collaboration between NASA and its French counterparts (central country d’T’études Apatiales).

“This satellite is a huge jump in our ability to map the seabed,” said David Sandwell, a geophysicist at the Scripps Oceanography Institute. A statement.

Launched in December 2022 Satellites are actually built to measure water height Cross the Earth’s oceans, lakes and rivers. Although not designed for undersea mapping, scientists have found that its advanced technology can help them estimate the size and shape of underwater structures more accurately.

Scientists in many disciplines say it is important to know what’s going on there. The map helps ships navigate around safety hazards and guides engineers to lay underwater communication cables. They also play a role in studying deep-sea currents, tides and movements Earth’s tectonic platethose huge pieces of puzzle pieces are the crust that have been transferred over millions of years.

Experts have been working to draw the seabed in traditional ways, sending ships on the water Sonar technology – Sound waves bounce from the bottom – measure depth. However, this process moves at the speed of a snail: the ship can only cover small areas at a time, while most of the oceans are unknown.

This slow progress means that scientists may not be able to achieve the goals they have Complete seabed map for 2030.

Although satellites flock in low-Earth orbit, most have Not so good resolution As sonar. However, new data from SWOT is about twice as good as older satellite maps, making it easier for you to see previously unknown features. A new SWOT-based undersea map published in the journal science In December.

NASA created the animation published above, with some new information revealing some new information in the SWOT data, including in Mexico, South America and the region of The Antarctic Peninsula. The purple area highlights the lower areas around higher underwater elevations, displayed in green.

The satellite’s new radar technology allows it to detect fewer passes of ships than previously mapped, which may increase known numbers seamount From 44,000 to 100,000. These underwater mountains affect ocean currents and may create nutrient-rich areas that attract marine life.

“We won’t be completing the full ship-based mapping for 2030,” Sandwell said. “But SWOT will help us fill it.”

Here is how the technology works: satellites detect slight changes in water height. The sea is not a glass-like sheet globally, it is an imbalance. The submerged mountains and other geological features have more mass than they are around them, which can cause slightly more gravity and cause bumps. These slight changes can be measured with SWOT instruments. Satellites bypass more than 90% of the Earth every 21 days.

SWOT satellites bypass more than 90% of the Earth every 21 days.
Credits: NASA / JPL-CALTECH / CNES / THALES ALENIA Space Illustration

SWOT apparently collects detailed data from older satellite missions that are only 30 years old science Paper. The resolution of the new map is about 5 miles, meaning scientists are detecting things from the past.

Clarity allows scientists to transfer the underwater ridges in long rows of carved sculpted through slow construction. them The most common The topographic features on Earth cover about 70% of the seabed – by the way, its water covers 70% of the earth. Because they are smaller than sea and mountains, satellites of the past have been trying to find them.

Enhanced maps may lead to new geological discoveries such as localizing active underwater volcanoes and previously unknown fault lines. It may even be possible to rediscover lost ancient lands that are not always hidden by water.

Astrobiologists have something, too. Many researchers believe that the chemical reactions needed to start life on this planet begin at the ridges in the middle of the ocean, where the tectonic plates have been separated. This activity sometimes creates water-heat ventilation holes, a critical environment for mineral-rich superheated water. SWOT data may help scientists identify new underwater hot springs for future research, which could help scientists better understand life’s recipes, even beyond the planet.