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  • 6/9/2025
Off Northwester North-America's Pacific coast, two kilometers beneath the sea on top of a volcanic ridge, black smoker chimneys are spewing superheated water rich in poisonous chemicals. Here, far beyond the reach of sunlight, despite these poisons, or maybe because of them, bizarre life forms thrive. Watch as a daring exhibition explores these newly discovered wonders.

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00:00They're not on me.
00:05Buckle children in the back seat. It's the safest seat for all children.
00:11BD, a worldwide manufacturer of medical devices with operations in Sandy, Utah.
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00:42During the following program, look for NOVA's web markers, which lead you to more information at our website.
00:50Tonight on NOVA, descend into the abyss,
00:54where volcanic chimneys billow scalding acidic plumes
00:58and give rise to an intriguing world of ocean life.
01:03Is the key to life's origins locked inside their fiery cores?
01:08A team of explorers test the limits of ocean engineering
01:12to bring these towering monoliths to the surface.
01:16Will they succeed?
01:18Volcanoes of the Deep.
01:19Volcanoes of the Deep.
01:21Volcanoes of the Deep.
01:24Major funding for NOVA is provided by the Park Foundation,
01:45dedicated to education and quality television.
01:47Scientific achievement is fueled by the simple desire to make things clear.
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02:20And by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
02:23And by contributions to your PBS station from viewers like you.
02:28Daybreak in Astoria, Oregon.
02:42The RV Atlantis,
02:44one of the world's most sophisticated research vessels,
02:47set sail for waters 200 miles off the Pacific coast.
02:51A team from the American Museum of Natural History and the University of Washington
03:05is launching this expedition
03:06to attempt a daring feat of engineering on the seafloor,
03:12a mile and a half down.
03:13Their purpose?
03:17To delve as never before
03:19into the wonders of deep sea volcanoes.
03:25Towering volcanic chimneys
03:27covered with animals unlike any other
03:30were discovered only 20 years ago.
03:37And this newly revealed world
03:39inspired one oceanographer
03:41with the bold idea
03:43of trying to raise
03:44these massive structures
03:45to the surface.
03:49I joke about this program
03:51being a bit of a harebrained idea
03:53because when it first came to me
03:54I kind of laughingly dismissed it.
03:57But it's not.
03:59It's not at all.
04:01We must examine in detail
04:03how volcanoes can support life
04:05on this planet.
04:07It's an ancient process.
04:09It's a potential site
04:11where life may have originated.
04:14It's also a habitat
04:16which might be emulated
04:17on other planets
04:18where life may have evolved
04:20or may have taken refuge.
04:21For all those reasons
04:22there's nothing harebrained about this.
04:25It just seemed harebrained
04:26at the beginning.
04:28It also seemed impossible.
04:31Turn right.
04:32But now undersea robots
04:38make this risky venture conceivable.
04:40The team first
04:43must map in precise detail
04:45the volcanic seabed
04:47far below.
04:52A robotic submersible
04:54called Jason
04:55will be their electronic eyes.
04:58Jason trails behind it
05:13a steel-armored
05:14fiber-optic cable
05:15its communication link
05:17to the ship.
05:19As the cable reels out
05:21the ship must hold
05:22completely stationary.
05:23Navigating by GPS
05:30a computer controls
05:32the ship's propellers
05:33keeping it within
05:34a few meters
05:35of the target.
05:37Range control van.
05:38Yes.
05:40We need to
05:40flip the switch down here
05:42just before you
05:43engage the auto position.
05:44The center of activity
05:46on this vast research vessel
05:48is a cramped
05:49and steamy room
05:50packed with engineers
05:51and scientists.
05:52How high are we
05:54off the bottom now?
05:54Five meters.
05:55Five meters.
05:56This is mission control
05:57for Jason operations.
06:00Can you zoom in, Dave, now?
06:02The robot
06:02now on the sea floor
06:04is piloted
06:05towards the chimneys
06:06and all are eager
06:09for their first glimpse
06:10of a hidden volcanic world.
06:16All right, Dale.
06:18Jason's lights illuminate
06:22only about 30 feet ahead
06:23in these pitch black waters.
06:28They fly the robot
06:29toward a billowing clue
06:31venting from the sea floor.
06:34Its smoke-like appearance
06:36comes from mineral particles
06:38in the scalding fluid.
06:39The current's pretty stiff.
06:44They're tempted to move in
06:46for a closer look
06:47but these black smokers
06:49reach over 700 degrees Fahrenheit
06:51hot enough to melt lead.
06:53Some of these chimneys
07:04tower as high
07:05as 15-story buildings.
07:07And though sunlight
07:10never reaches them
07:11they are blanketed with life.
07:16It's part of this mystery
07:18about this environment
07:19is that you go
07:20through the really dark water
07:21where you don't expect
07:23to find much
07:23and then suddenly
07:25you start seeing life
07:26and it's life
07:26that's very beautiful
07:27because it is very bright
07:29and luminescent
07:31and also very star-ecking
07:34because it doesn't look
07:35like anything
07:35that we're used to.
07:37With a pool underneath
07:37that's why you see
07:38the reflection.
07:40For the past 10 years
07:41geologist Veronique Robigou
07:43has struggled
07:44with the question
07:45of how these chimneys grow
07:46and sustain
07:48such a wealth
07:49of unusual creatures.
07:55The birth of a chimney
07:57starts when molten rock
07:59far below the seabed
08:00heats up water
08:01circulating through the cracks.
08:07The hot water rises
08:08carrying dissolved metals
08:10such as iron,
08:11copper,
08:12and zinc
08:13from deep within the crust.
08:17When this hot acidic fluid
08:19hits near freezing seawater
08:21the metals come out of solution
08:23to form the rocky walls
08:25of the chimney.
08:26The hot or hydrothermal fluids
08:33that build these structures
08:35are also vital
08:36to the life
08:37that thrives here.
08:39They're really
08:40a living system
08:42and we know now
08:43that these rocks
08:45are full of life
08:46which we don't have access to
08:48by just sampling
08:48the surface ever.
08:50And so the only way
08:51to really understand
08:52the pattern
08:53of the life
08:54associated with the pattern
08:55of the flows
08:56and the pattern
08:57of the minerals
08:58inside the rock
08:59is going to bring
09:00one back
09:00an entire structure.
09:02We've been in a way
09:03dreaming about doing this
09:04for several years now.
09:08An intense curiosity
09:09has driven these scientists
09:11to pursue a more
09:12hands-on approach
09:13to explore
09:16this living system.
09:17The kinds of studies
09:21that we need
09:21to be able to do
09:22with the samples
09:24cannot be done
09:25on the seafloor.
09:26We need to look inside.
09:28This is the circulatory system
09:29of this living
09:31ecological community
09:32and to understand it
09:34we can't simply
09:35sit on the seafloor
09:36and watch it.
09:38But to haul
09:39a massive chimney
09:40up from the seafloor
09:41the engineers
09:42first must know
09:43what they are grappling with.
09:44These 2D video images
09:47won't be enough.
09:53As night falls
09:54the team prepares
09:55to try a cutting-edge technology.
09:59They want to create
10:003D maps of the structures
10:02accurate to within centimeters.
10:08To generate maps
10:09in such detail
10:10the robot Jason
10:12must hover like a hummingbird
10:13and move precisely
10:15around the chimneys.
10:18At each new position
10:19Jason will take pictures
10:21the computer
10:22will later compile
10:23in 3D.
10:26Pinpointing Jason's
10:27exact location
10:28is critical
10:29and requires
10:30navigation beacons
10:31called transponders
10:33that send acoustic signals
10:35to guide the robot.
10:36The transponders
10:45are dropped
10:46to the seafloor
10:47in a special
10:47carrying cage.
10:54It's now 4 a.m.
10:56but on a ship
10:57that never sleeps
10:58operations run
10:59night and day.
11:00Bingo.
11:06Okay.
11:08We're there.
11:10With their new
11:11navigation equipment
11:12they no longer
11:13need the joystick
11:14to pilot Jason.
11:15Are you in auto
11:16right now?
11:18Do you want me
11:18to go in auto?
11:19Yeah.
11:23You got it.
11:25Now a computer program
11:26has control
11:27of the robot.
11:31Jason begins
11:32taking sonar scans
11:33of the chimneys.
11:35Oh man
11:35look at the profile.
11:38Awesome.
11:40As well as stereo
11:41video
11:42and digital photographs.
11:43To complete
11:47the 3D imaging
11:48the robot
11:49and the scientists
11:51work around the clock.
11:55A week later
11:56with tens of thousands
11:57of digital photos
11:59a seascape
12:00of the ocean floor
12:01is stitched together.
12:04So dark
12:05is this undersea terrain
12:07that wide expanses
12:08like this
12:09have never been
12:10seen before.
12:13From the composite
12:15pictures
12:15individual chimneys
12:17can be studied
12:18in detail.
12:21On the ship's
12:23main deck
12:23computers churn
12:24through millions
12:25of sonar data points
12:26to create
12:27a 3D map.
12:30Although the first image
12:32is something
12:33only a computer scientist
12:34could love.
12:35Yeah.
12:36That's looking
12:37almost behind the vehicle.
12:39Look we're stopping
12:39at each meter
12:40and we're scanning.
12:41Oh man.
12:43Now we've just
12:44got to make it
12:44look like stuff
12:44so someone else
12:45will believe that.
12:46That's right.
12:53These are the most
12:54detailed maps
12:55ever made
12:56of the ocean bottom.
12:59The result
13:00of nearly two weeks
13:01of deep sea imaging
13:02and countless hours
13:03of data crunching.
13:06With this virtual
13:08sea floor
13:08in 3D
13:09the team
13:10can now plan
13:11their recovery
13:11in their recovery
13:11of the chimneys.
13:16They've illuminated
13:17at least one small part
13:19of the deep ocean.
13:24The site they've mapped
13:26in the North Pacific
13:27is part of the longest
13:29geological structure
13:30on earth
13:30a deep sea mountain range
13:33over 46,000 miles long
13:35known as the
13:36mid-ocean ridge system.
13:37It stretches
13:39around the planet
13:40like the seams
13:41on a baseball
13:41and marks
13:43where the great plates
13:44of the earth's crust
13:45are spreading apart.
13:48All along
13:49this vast network
13:50volcanic eruptions
13:51give birth
13:52to new ocean floor.
13:56And molten rock
13:57deep under the seabed
13:59creates the scalding
14:00black smokers
14:01that stream
14:02from vents
14:03and chimneys.
14:06But only a tiny fraction
14:08of this ocean inferno
14:10has ever been explored.
14:17Now
14:17deep sea technology
14:19makes it possible
14:19to reach this frontier.
14:23And with the chimneys mapped
14:24the scientists on board
14:26are eager to visit them
14:27in person
14:27to pursue the mystery
14:29of how life flourishes
14:31in this volcanic world.
14:35Bridge, Fantel,
14:36we're ready to go
14:36and you give the word.
14:39They'll travel
14:39to the depth
14:40in a submersible
14:41called Alvin.
14:47Take attention.
14:48Unlatch.
14:48Lower one ready.
14:53On the sea floor
14:54each square foot
14:56of its titanium hull
14:57can withstand
14:58over 700 tons
14:59of pressure.
15:01For biologists
15:07Chuck Fisher
15:08and pilot
15:09Pat Hickey
15:09the descent
15:10will take
15:11over an hour.
15:13Plenty of time
15:14for anticipation.
15:17You know you're going
15:18someplace
15:18that few people
15:19have ever gone.
15:19Often places
15:20where no one
15:21has gone before.
15:22And so that's
15:22a very real
15:23excitement
15:24that you have
15:25with you
15:26the whole time.
15:26through Alvin's
15:39porthole
15:39the aqua
15:40of the surface
15:41waters
15:41soon shifts
15:42to indigo
15:43and then
15:44to inky black.
15:45Alvin on the bottom
15:482-2-1-2 meters.
15:51When we get
15:51onto the ocean floor
15:52in the places
15:53where I study
15:54it is a very
15:55strange environment.
15:59The plates
16:00that make up
16:00the surface
16:01of the earth
16:02are spreading
16:02apart.
16:04Hot water
16:05is belching
16:05from the ocean
16:06bottom
16:06at 350 degrees
16:08centigrade plus
16:09and the geography
16:11of that terrain
16:12is just astounding.
16:14It really looks
16:15more like
16:16what one would
16:16expect to see
16:17on another planet
16:18than what one
16:18would expect
16:19to see
16:19on the earth.
16:24And this alien world
16:26is full of surprises.
16:29Passed over
16:30a big old
16:30spider crab.
16:32The deep sea floor
16:33was long considered
16:34a barren desert.
16:37Yet as Chuck
16:37and Pat
16:38steer toward
16:39the hot vents
16:39the critter count
16:41increases.
16:42If you look
16:43out your window
16:44you will see
16:44a great big skate
16:45coming in
16:46to look back
16:46at you in your window.
16:48Very cool.
16:52But how could
16:53life exist
16:54down here
16:55in the cold
16:56and eternal
16:57darkness?
17:05Once
17:05scientists
17:06assumed
17:07that any animals
17:07on the sea floor
17:08had to depend
17:09on food
17:10drifting down
17:11from the surface.
17:13But there is not
17:14nearly enough
17:14to explain
17:15the wealth
17:16of life
17:16found at hot vents
17:17like the lush
17:20mats of tube worms.
17:21What I'm looking
17:25for here
17:25is a nice
17:26plump
17:27of young
17:27tube worms.
17:29Tube worms
17:29are Chuck Fisher's
17:30passion.
17:32These animals
17:32are unlike
17:33any other.
17:35And when first
17:36discovered
17:36scientists
17:37couldn't imagine
17:38what
17:38or how
17:39they ate.
17:42They have
17:43no mouths
17:44or stomachs.
17:45Yet these creatures
17:46thrive
17:47wherever cracks
17:48on the seafloor
17:49release
17:49hydrogen sulfide
17:51a product
17:52of volcanic
17:53activity.
17:56This caustic acid
17:58pours from the
17:59chimneys
18:00often called
18:01sulfide structures.
18:05Wait
18:05270
18:06driving
18:07to S&M.
18:08Chuck and
18:09Pat fly
18:10to a 60 foot
18:11tall chimney
18:11called
18:12Smoke and
18:13Mirrors
18:13Named for
18:16its billowing
18:16plumes
18:17and shimmering
18:18water.
18:21It's blanketed
18:22with tube
18:23worms.
18:26Here comes
18:27Alvin
18:28for a gentle
18:30little grab.
18:34Grabbing
18:34these
18:35slippery
18:36creatures
18:36with a robotic
18:37claw
18:37is painstaking
18:39work.
18:39It doesn't
18:40take a real
18:41firm grip.
18:43Oh, that's a
18:43good one.
18:45That was
18:46great.
18:47It's all
18:47we need.
18:49They've
18:50spent hours
18:51huddled
18:51in this
18:52six foot
18:52diameter
18:53sphere.
18:55Oh.
18:57Ready
18:57for a
18:58stretch.
19:00Atlantis
19:01Alvin
19:01ready to
19:01come up.
19:03Excellent
19:04dive,
19:04Pat.
19:05Went
19:06well.
19:08Pat
19:08releases
19:09the ballast
19:09that has
19:10kept them
19:10on the
19:10sea floor
19:11and they
19:12prepare
19:12for the
19:13long
19:13ascent.
19:14We're
19:14off the
19:15bottom.
19:15We're
19:15on our
19:15way
19:16home.
19:25The
19:25dangers
19:26of the
19:26open
19:26sea
19:27make
19:27the
19:28mission
19:28to
19:28recover
19:28a
19:29black
19:29smoker
19:29chimney
19:30all the
19:31more
19:31daunting.
19:31even
19:48the
19:48routine
19:48recovery
19:49of a
19:49submersible
19:50is
19:51fraught
19:51with
19:51peril.
19:52back.
20:00Back.
20:00THE END
20:30TO KEEP THEM ALIVE AT THE SURFACE, THE TWO WORMS ARE RUSHED TO A REFRIGERATED ROOM BUT THE KEY TO HOW THEY SURVIVE AT ALL LIES UNDER THE MICROSCOPE. THESE WORMS HARBOR INSIDE THEIR BODIES A REMARKABLE SOURCE OF FOOD, TINY
21:00SINGLE-CELLED BACTERIA. THESE MICROBES ARE ABLE TO PRODUCE FOOD USING HYDROGEN SULPHIDE AND OTHER CHEMICALS THAT FLOW AROUND THE CHIMNEY.
21:12EACH MICROBE IS INVISIBLE TO THE NAKED EYE, BUT WHEN BILLIONS CLUMP TOGETHER, THEY APPEAR LIKE COTTONY WEBS DRAPING THE SEA FLOOR.
21:24AS PLANTS AT THE SURFACE USE THE ENERGY OF SUNLIGHT, THESE MICROBES USE ENERGY STORED IN CHEMICALS TO GROW AND MULTIPLY, SUPPLYING FOOD TO OTHER CREATURES.
21:38THEIR DISCOVERY IN THE DEEP NEARLY 20 YEARS AGO STUNNED SCIENTLY.
21:45WE JUST DIDN'T THINK VERY MUCH ABOUT PERHAPS MICROBIAL CHEMOSYNTHESIS BEING THE BASE OF A MAJOR FOOD CHAIN.
21:53YOU KNOW, WE'RE STILL VERY MUCH BIASED TOWARDS PHOTOSYNTHESIS BEING THE PRIMARY PRODUCERS AND FROM THERE LEADING TO HIGHER ANIMALS.
22:00SO THAT WAS A BIG SURPRISE. I JUST DON'T THINK IT COULD HAVE BEEN PREDICTED BASED ON WHAT WE KNEW.
22:07AND IT'S STILL A BIG SURPRISE TODAY TO THINK THAT ANIMALS HAVE CO-EVOLVED WITH MICROORGANISMS WITH THAT KIND OF ABUNDANCE AND THAT KIND OF DENSITY IS STILL PRETTY AWESOME.
22:21THE LARGER CREATURES IN THIS WORLD EITHER LIVE OFF MICROBES WITHIN THEIR BODIES OR PRAY ON ONE ANOTHER.
22:28GIANT SPIDER CRABS,
22:32SNAILS AND SEASTARS,
22:36THE FISH AND THE OCTOPUS,
22:38ALL ARE ULTIMATELY DEPENDENT ON TINY SINGLE-CELLED ORGANISMS.
22:44AND THE VOLCANIC FLUIDS THAT FLOW FROM THE ROCKS.
22:48THIS IS A WORLD WHERE THE ENERGY FOR LIFE SPRINGS NOT FROM THE SUN, BUT FROM THE GEOTHERMAL FORCES OF THE EARTH ITSELF.
22:58AS A BIOLOGIST, I HAVE NO DOUBT IN MY MIND WHATSOEVER THAT THE GEOLOGY IS THE DRIVER FOR THE BIOLOGY.
23:05AND IN FACT, EVEN THE STRUCTURE OF THE ROCKS THAT ARE IN THE CHIMINIES WILL DETERMINE THE TYPE OF FAUNAE YOU FIND ON TOP OF THE CHIMINIES.
23:12THE BEST WAY TO EXPLORE THE LINKS BETWEEN BIOLOGY AND GEOLOGY MAY BE TO BRING A CHIMNEY TO THE SURFACE.
23:21NOT JUST TO UNDERSTAND LIFE HERE TODAY, BUT ALSO THE POSSIBLE ROOTS OF LIFE NEARLY 4 BILLION YEARS AGO.
23:29THE ORIGIN OF LIFE QUESTION WAS PERHAPS THE MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION THAT CAME OUT OF THE DISCOVERY OF THE VENT.
23:42THE IDEA THAT ENVIRONMENTS LIKE THIS THAT CAN SUPPORT MICROBILE LIFE COULD BE VERY, VERY ANCIENT AND COULD RESEMBLE THE FIRST ECOSYSTEMS ON EARTH.
23:54WHEN LIFE TOOK HOLD ON THE PLANET AROUND 4 BILLION YEARS AGO, THERE WAS A VAST NETWORK OF HYDROTHERMAL VENTS, PERHAPS PROVIDING THE GEOCHEMICAL ENERGY TO SPAWN AND SUPPORT LIFE.
24:09THERE IS NOW EVIDENCE THAT THE SURFACE OF THIS EARLY EARTH WAS BOMBARDED BY METEORS AND ASTROIDS.
24:16THE SAFEST HARBOR FOR LIFE MAY HAVE BEEN IN THE DEEP.
24:24THE GEOLOGY AND CHEMISTRY OF THE VENTS HAVE CHANGED LITTLE IN BILLIONS OF YEARS.
24:31SCIENTISTS HAVE SHOWN THAT THE COMBINATION OF HIGH PRESSURE AND MINERALS FOUND HERE CAN PRODUCE AMMONIA, AN ESSENTIAL BUILDING BLOCK OF LIFE.
24:42AND BY DELVING INSIDE A CHIMNEY, THEY MAY FIND CLUES TO HOW LIFE ITSELF ORIGINATED.
24:51I THINK THERE IS A VERY, VERY HIGH PROBABILITY OF FINDING LIFE FORMS THAT STILL RETAIN GENETIC CHARACTERISTICS OF SOME OF THE EARLIEST LIFE FORMS OF ALL ON EARTH.
25:06AND SO FROM THAT PERSPECTIVE IT'S A HUNT.
25:09IT'S A HUNT FOR WHAT I WOULD CALL GENETIC FOSSILS.
25:12AND TRYING TO FIND HABITATS THAT REALLY ARE MIMICING LARGER SCALE ENVIRONMENTS THAT MAY HAVE OCCURRED SEVERAL BILLION YEARS AGO.
25:21THE KIND OF STUDY THAT WE WANT TO ACCOMPLISH WITH RECOVERY OF LARGE SULPHIDE STRUCTURES FROM THE SEAFLOOR IS TO REACH BACK INTO THOSE CONDITIONS
25:31AND SEE IF WE CAN UNDERSTAND WHAT THE PHYSICS AND THE CHEMISTRY MIGHT TELL US ABOUT THAT EARLY ENVIRONMENT IN WHICH LIFE EVOLVED.
25:42WITH THE MAPPING AND RECONOUSANCE OF THE CHIMNEYS COMPLETE, THE TEAM MUST NOW PREPARE FOR ITS NEXT AND MORE DAUNTING MISSION.
25:50AS THESE SCIENTISTS KNOW, THE CHALLENGES OF WORKING IN THE OCEAN ARE AS GREAT AS ITS MYSTERIES.
26:14HERE ON VANCOUVER ISLAND, PREPARATIONS FOR THE RECOVERY MISSION MOVE INTO HIGH GEAR.
26:19HEY, BOB, CAN YOU GIVE ME THE COMPENSATION PRESSURE, PLEASE?
26:22THE ENGINEERS ARE TACKLING THE TRICKY PROBLEM OF HOW TO DETACH BLACK SMOKER CHIMNEYS FROM THE SEAFLOOR.
26:29TODAY, THEY'RE TESTING A STANLEY UNDERWATER CHAINSAW, FITTED WITH DIAMOND-STUDDED TEETH.
26:39IT WILL BE OPERATED BY A ROBOT CALLED ROPOS.
26:46NOW, YOU CAN CUT ANYWHERE FROM THIS POINT UP.
26:49BUT NOTHING THEY DO HERE CAN ANTICIPATE ALL THE PROBLEMS THEY'LL FACE WITH VOLCANIC CHIMNEYS.
26:56THESE STRUCTURES HAVE ALWAYS HAD HOT WATER POURING THROUGH THEM,
26:59AND WE'RE NOT SURE AT THIS POINT WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN.
27:02WE CAN GET THE SAW BLADE IN THERE AND OPEN UP A NEW PASSAGE FOR THE WATER TO COME OUT
27:07SO THE HOT WATER CAN START SWIRTING OUT AROUND THE SAW BLADE AND BACK TOWARDS THE VEHICLE.
27:12SO IT'S DEFINITELY A CONCERN.
27:15OKAY, RETRACTED.
27:18EVEN WORSE, THE BLADE COULD GET TRAPPED.
27:26AND THE DESTABILIZED CHIMNEY COULD COME CRASHING DOWN ON THE ROBOT.
27:34A LOT OF TIMES IT'S THE THINGS YOU DON'T REALLY THINK ABOUT THAT CATCH YOU.
27:39FROM THE TIME WE START ONE OF THESE OPERATIONS UNTIL IT'S ACTUALLY SECURED ON THE DECK,
27:44WE'RE GOING TO BE NERVOUS ABOUT IT BECAUSE THERE'S SO MANY UNKNOWNS WE'RE DEALING WITH.
27:48BUT THAT'S THE WAY IT IS THEY'RE GOING TO SEE, AND WE KEEP PLUGGING.
27:52WE NEVER GIVE UP UNTIL WE HAVE TO COME BACK TO PORT.
27:57FROM THE TIME THEY SET SAIL, THE TEAM WILL HAVE THREE WEEKS TO BRING THE CHIMNEYS TO THE SURFACE.
28:04THIS CERTAINLY MUST BE ONE OF THE MOST AMBITIOUS EXPEDITIONS THAT THE MUSEUM HAS EVER MADDED.
28:11AND ALSO THERE'S AN ELEMENT OF RISK IN THIS.
28:14IN FACT, THERE'S A GREAT ELEMENT OF RISK.
28:15AND PERHAPS THAT'S ONE OF THE FUN THINGS ABOUT EXPEDITIONS,
28:19IS THAT YOU DON'T ACTUALLY EVER KNOW IF YOU'RE GOING TO GET WHAT YOU SET OUT TO GET.
28:29AS NIGHT FALLS, THEY NAVIGATE THEIR WAY THROUGH PUGET SOUTH AND INTO THE NORTH PACIFIC.
28:35IT'S BEEN NEARLY A YEAR SINCE THE TEAM LAST VISITED THESE WATERS,
28:53AND THE VOLCANIC RIDGE FAR BELOW.
29:09DURING THIS TIME, THE SEA FLOOR COULD HAVE CHANGED DRASTICALLY.
29:18THEY LAUNCH ROPOS ON THIS FIRST CRITICAL DIVE,
29:22NOT KNOWING FOR CERTAIN WHAT THEY'LL ENCOUNTER A MILE AND A HALF DOWN.
29:26OKAY, WE'RE, UH, STILL ABOVE THE BOTTOM, BUT THE VEHICLE'S LEFT THE CAGE,
29:30AND WE'RE JUST RENOVERING AROUND, AND WE'LL BE SETTING TO THE BOTTOM SHORTLY.
29:34OKAY, ROGER THAT.
29:42I BISHED THIS WAS THAT LITTLE BASIN.
29:46FLYING TOWARD THE HEART OF THE CHIMNEY FIELD,
29:48THEY ARE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR FAMILIAR TERRAIN.
29:52OKAY, WE CAN SEE COFFEE TOWER.
29:55JUST COMING INTO VIEW.
29:59THERE SHOULD BE A MARKER.
30:02OKAY, THAT MEANS IF WE TURN TO THE RIGHT, IF WE TURN WEST, WE SHOULD SEE TWIN PEAKS.
30:08YEP, THIS IS IT.
30:10SO IT'S RIGHT ACROSS OVER THERE.
30:12THERE'S A MARKER.
30:15THEY LEFT MARKERS TO GUIDE THEM BACK TO THE CHIMNEYS THEY SELECTED LAST YEAR.
30:19THEIR DETAILED MAPS TELL THEM WHAT THESE TARGETS SHOULD LOOK LIKE.
30:24BUT UNTIL THEY FIND THEM, THE TEAM CAN'T BE SURE THAT THE CHIMNEYS THEY PLAN TO RECOVER ARE STILL STANDING.
30:32OKAY, CHECK THIS ONE HERE.
30:34THE DYNAMIC WORLD OF DEEP-SEA VOLCANOS IS PRONE TO CHANGE.
30:45THEY WILL NEVER FORGET THE SOBERING LESSON THEY LEARNED A FEW YEARS AGO.
30:49FROM A MONSTROUS CHIMNEY CALLED GODZILLA.
30:58WHEN FIRST SIGHTED, THIS CHIMNEY ROSE OVER 140 FEET, A SKYSCRAPER ON THE SEAFLOOR.
31:04BUT WHEN GEOLOGIST VERONIQUE ROBIGU WENT BACK TO VISIT GODZILLA, SHE WAS IN FOR A SHOCK.
31:12WHEN WE ARRIVED AT GODZILLA, IT JUST DIDN'T LOOK LIKE GODZILLA ANYMORE.
31:18THIS MAGNIFICENT TOWER THAT ACTUALLY LOOKED LIKE A GIGANTIC MUSHROOM DIDN'T LOOK LIKE A MUSHROOM ANYMORE.
31:25IT JUST LOOKED LIKE A STUMP.
31:27SO I KNEW SOMETHING CATASTROPHIC HAD HAPPENED IN THE AREA.
31:30I JUST DIDN'T WANT IT TO BE GODZILLA FALLING OVER.
31:33THEN IT BECAME REALLY EXCITING BECAUSE THEN WE STARTED THINKING, SO WHAT HAPPENED?
31:39HOW CAN WE EXPLAIN THIS?
31:42THE MOST LIKELY EXPLANATION WAS AN EARTHQUAKE.
31:47THE TOP-HEAVY GODZILLA WAS TOPPLED BY ONE OF THE MANY TREMORS ALONG THIS ACTIVE VOLCANIC RIDGE.
31:54BUT THEN THE GIANT ROSE AGAIN.
31:58JUST A YEAR AFTER GODZILLA'S FALL, IT WAS COVERED WITH LIFE AND HAD GROWN NEW SPIRES NEARLY 15 FEET HIGH.
32:06IF GODZILLA COULD RISE AND FALL THIS FAST,
32:09WHAT ABOUT THE CHIMNEY THEY PLAN TO RECOVER?
32:12SO IT'S ABOUT A METER WIDE?
32:15YEAH.
32:16THOSE ARE BIG.
32:18TWO OF THE STRUCTURES AT LEAST ARE STILL UPRIGHT.
32:21BUT THEY MAY HAVE GROWN UNWIELDING.
32:23WE'RE GOING TO PUT THE HOOP OVER ONE TO TWO OF THE STRUCTURES AND MEASURE THEM.
32:31IT'LL BE FANG AND SPIN, F-I-N-N.
32:36ROTATE THAT WAY.
32:39THIS METAL HOOP WILL GAGE THE CHIMNEY'S SIZE.
32:44KEEP NEEDS A GENTLE TOUCH WITH THE JOYSTICK.
32:50HOOPING THE STRUCTURE IS LIKE THREADING A NEEDLE A MILE AND A HALF DOWN.
33:00HERE, FANG.
33:02ONE WRONG MOVE COULD DAMAGE THE CHIMNEY.
33:08FANG HASN'T CHANGED AT ALL.
33:11THAT'S IT.
33:12AS FAR AS WE THOUGHT WE'D GET, ISN'T IT?
33:15YOU HAPPY WITH THAT LEAD?
33:17WE'RE VERY GOOD.
33:19WHILE ONLY A FIRST STEP, HOOPING FANG IS A HUGE RELIEF.
33:24WE'VE GOT AN AWFUL LOT AROUND.
33:26YEAH.
33:31THE TEAM'S OTHER TARGETS ALSO LOOK GOOD.
33:34A HOT BLACK SMOKER KNOWN AS FINN.
33:37A LARGER STRUCTURE CALLED GUENIN, BLANKETED WITH ANIMALS.
33:44AND A FOURTH CHIMNEY, ROAN, NAMED FOR A CELTIC SPIRIT OF THE SEA.
33:54IN THE MORNING, A NEW SHIP ARRIVES ON THE SEA.
33:58THE JOHN P. TULLEY, A CANADIAN COAST GUARD VESSEL.
34:02A MASSIVE WINCH AND PULLEY SYSTEM AT THE SHIP'S STERN WILL BE USED TO HAUL THE CHIMNEYS FROM THE SEA FLOOR.
34:15THE TULLEY'S TRANSIT FROM VANCOUVER ISLAND HAS BEEN ROUGH.
34:18VARYING PEOPLE AND EQUIPMENT FROM SHIP TO SHIP WILL BE EVEN ROUGHER.
34:24STRONG WINDS AND WILD SEAS ARE THE GREATEST THREAT TO THIS MISSION.
34:38AND NOW THERE ARE GUSTS UP TO 30 NOTTS.
34:42THINKS, HIGH ROUGH.
34:43THINKS, HIGH RHYMEN.
34:44THINKS, HEY, THAT'S L commence TO TELL YOU.
34:47THINKS, HEY, THAT'S LAST.
34:48THINKS, HEY, THAT'S LAST.
34:52THINKS, HEY, THAT'S LAST.
34:54TRYING TO GOT TO THANKS, HEY, THAT'S LAST.
35:00TELL YOU, MAYBE, THAT'S LAST.
35:02Engineer Vern Miller makes it safely on board, but the storm still endangers the team's carefully
35:22laid plans.
35:26First, they intend to capture each chimney within a metal cage.
35:32This cage holds a loose steel cable that can be cinched up like a lasso.
35:39The robot will then saw the chimney from various angles until it is weak enough to break off.
35:47Finally, a line will be floated to the surface so that the structure can be pulled from the seafloor.
35:57But plenty of things can go wrong.
36:03The line for the recovery is over 8,000 feet long and one small snare could wreak havoc.
36:12These plastic fasteners should prevent tangles.
36:15They'll break one by one when the line is pulled from the basket.
36:19Packing the line will take nearly 10 hours, but waiting for calm seas could take even longer.
36:28What do you see in that weather map?
36:30I don't see, uh...
36:31I don't see any improvement.
36:32No, no, neither.
36:33Are you willing to hold?
36:34I think we should.
36:35Yeah, I think we should.
36:36So do I?
36:37No.
36:38While concerned about losing time, they hold operations as the storm rages on.
36:41Two nights pass and the winds are still threatening.
36:42Time is running out.
36:43They have to begin.
36:44Okay, let's do it.
36:45They lower a cage designed to capture the first chimney.
36:48It travels down, suspended beneath Ropos.
36:49The storm rages on.
36:55Two nights pass and the winds are still threatening.
36:59Time is running out.
37:00They have to begin.
37:02Okay, let's do it.
37:04They lower a cage designed to capture the first chimney.
37:09It travels down, suspended beneath Ropos.
37:16The engineers keep careful watch, fearful that in the rough seas their delicate equipment
37:23could crash into the ship.
37:25They get there.
37:38They have to fancy.
37:41Yes, yes, yes.
37:42No, no, yes!
37:44Yes, yes, yes.
37:46Okay, I'm facing east now.
37:58Two hours later, Keith Shepard has the chimney, called Fang, lined up.
38:04Can you swing that more to the center?
38:07Okay.
38:11Nothing like a challenge, eh?
38:16Looks pretty good there, Bob.
38:21Ropos moves in to tighten the cable.
38:26With its left claw, the robot grasps the cage for support.
38:31Okay, arm man.
38:32And pulls the cable taut with its right.
38:37Try and get it in the big gruncher there.
38:41There we go.
38:42In the control room with Keith, Bob Holland is in charge of the dexterous pulley.
38:54Rotate, rotate, rotate.
38:56Good.
39:03Once the cable is secured, they can move ahead with the sawing.
39:06But a final tug brings a surprise.
39:15Okay, Bob, can you swing the fly?
39:16Oh, shit.
39:17A crack appears along what seems to be a natural fracture.
39:23The chimney may now be unstable.
39:52They gingerly tighten the cable to keep Fang together, and prepare to plunge their chainsaw directly into the brittle structure.
40:05Scalding fluid jets out, but the blade keeps moving.
40:21Smoking.
40:23Try a bit of slow.
40:24They cut from various angles, well below the crack, without the chimney toppling.
40:33But no one can predict how Fang will hold up when they try to pull it from the seafloor.
40:42A scientist can go out and observe something and come back with all kinds of information, and he's succeeded.
40:48An engineer goes out with a goal to bring something back, and if he doesn't bring it back, he hasn't succeeded.
40:53And when you go out and try and get something you don't know what it is, there's a lot more risk of failure.
40:58The time has come to take the risk.
41:07With this 8,000-foot line, they'll try to haul Fang to the surface.
41:16Operations switch over to the second ship, the John P. Tully.
41:19A small boat, are you going to want us to drop the line?
41:23Where Lee and the other engineers wait.
41:24We want to have to drop the end of the nylon.
41:28Floats have brought the line to the surface.
41:32And a Zodiac retrieves it from the waves.
41:40The engineers make certain that the line is free of snares.
41:46As it is threaded over the A-frame and through the heavy winch.
41:49We're just about on top of the spot now.
41:53He's just going to take a turn to starboard.
41:56The span of the ship is now about 7 meters southwest of the target.
42:01That's a good position if you can hold it.
42:03Our line angle is perfect.
42:05Roger.
42:12This is the Sandale Rattali.
42:14The unit is 1,000 feet below us now.
42:17Roger.
42:19For nearly an hour, they reeled the line in, anxious to see what lies at the other end.
42:29The bridge is the Sandale.
42:30We have it right up the water surface here.
42:42It's really precarious.
42:43The crack in the chimney is now a clean break.
42:58But two large pieces are still intact.
43:01Let's just bring it down there.
43:25I feel elated that we got something. It broke just about where we wanted amazingly. This
43:49is where we were really trying to cut it pretty much. What more can you say? We have the rock
44:00aboard. It's in three sections starting from the base up. We just lost the top seat. Roger
44:08that. I'll pass that on to John. He can't wait. He's got to get over there. So we'll be seeing
44:15him shortly there. What struck John Delaney a decade ago as a wild and impossible feat
44:24now is becoming a reality. And bringing Fang to the surface is just the beginning. This
44:33relatively small chimney was always intended as a test case. It's okay. It's a good start.
44:41It's a good start. There are three more structures still waiting on the seafloor far below.
44:52Rowan will be next. Like Fang, this chimney is riddled with natural fractures. Could
45:00be. It could be at the bottom. There's definitely a natural one. One large fracture line inspires
45:08John with a bold thought. Why not forego the sawing and simply lasso and pull on the chimney,
45:16assuming it will break at the ideal spot.
45:18But not everyone is keen on the idea. The debate is whether there's actually a fracture zone there in the right
45:29area that will let go. And I think my point is that if we put a cut, it can't hurt anything.
45:35But Lee concedes to John's plan to do no sawing at all. The hope is that this will save precious time
45:44lost to weather delays. The wisdom of the plan will soon be measured. If Rowan remains stuck to
45:52the seafloor, the tension on their heavy winch will rise.
46:03Kelly Bridge, this is the Fandale. We have about 12,000 pounds tension on it now and we're just slowly building very smooth.
46:11As they reel the line in, their own tension builds.
46:18We're going to stop at 20,000 pounds. If it doesn't break, I don't know. That's enough to wait.
46:26The chimney is still anchored to the seafloor. And the tension on the line is nearly enough to rip their heavy equipment from the deck.
46:47Unless it breaks loose at this, I wouldn't want to go much higher. And we're going to have to decide whether to send the line cutter down or not pretty soon here.
47:00Roger that.
47:02While it means a major setback, Lee is prepared to cut the line and start over.
47:07At the load we're at right now, if it was a free-hanging rock down there, it'd be too heavy to bring aboard. We'd go over the 30,000 pounds cycle.
47:16It came loose and it's coming up.
47:33You're the luckiest bastard.
47:38Rowan has broken free from the seafloor.
47:44One hurdle is past, but what lies ahead will not be simple.
47:51They appear to have a multi-ton chimney on their line, and no one knows how difficult it will be to handle.
47:59Here it comes. Here it comes. Here it is in sight, right at the surface.
48:06We've got multiple pieces. Look at the smoke coming out.
48:10Okay, steady it up.
48:14At the surface, two huge pieces of Rowan hang from what seems a fragile thread.
48:21I would think we might be better to get on the wire.
48:24I wouldn't get on that one, but he may pull it off.
48:28One slip, and this precious hull could plunge back to the depths.
48:33Okay, let's get the next one and steady into the top here.
48:44And that's not all that could go wrong.
48:46Do you want to do the same thing on the other side?
48:50My greatest fear is hurting somebody or killing somebody, and it's a very strong potential if you get this rock swinging on the deck.
48:57Okay, just play it easy there.
49:00You can think of a wrecking ball, and you're trying to control it and get it onto the ship and secure it down.
49:07Now, they must handle two swinging rocks at once.
49:11Okay.
49:20That's incredible.
49:23Even after traveling through a mile and a half of ocean water,
49:26Rowan is steaming at nearly 200 degrees Fahrenheit.
49:34Its surface is covered with tube worms, some still alive.
49:40Its interior is filled with billions of microbes.
49:44We will have more samples, better collected samples, and better analyzed samples from these structures than we've ever had before.
49:52That has, for me, the same kind of fascination and sense of discovery and exploration that I would have if I got to go to Mars and drill, let's say, a kilometer down into the regolith and look for water and life there.
50:05I have the same kind of excitement that I'm going to find something really different and something that's going to be, you know, of profound importance in understanding how life originated and how life evolved.
50:16While the scientists have their samples, no one wants to endure the same uncertainty again.
50:24The team will no longer count on natural fractures.
50:29The remaining chimneys will face the chainsaw.
50:35At nearly 600 degrees Fahrenheit, Finn is the hottest black smoker they will target.
50:42Sawing this chimney creates a new passage for scalding water.
50:49The geologists know that the hotter the chimney, the more fragile it should be.
50:56At the surface, Finn's delicate nature becomes apparent.
51:05The whole thing fell apart.
51:24What they fear is a heartbreaking loss turns out to be less grave.
51:28They've still recovered two-thirds of the structure and now have a window to its interior.
51:38Boy, look at that child. That is amazing.
51:41The pieces glittering with chalcopyrite, also known as fool's gold, are scientific treasures.
51:49They hold precious information about the geology and chemistry that supports life in the deep.
52:02The next morning, in the final hours of the cruise, the fourth chimney, Gwenen, emerges steaming without a hitch.
52:14She is blanketed and filled with life.
52:25It's a fitting end to a journey of great travail, but even greater success for scientists and engineer alike.
52:39I think we've gotten, scientifically, we've gotten absolutely everything we wanted.
52:44Four for four, that's pretty good odds.
52:48Yeah.
52:51And I know why we succeeded, too.
52:54This is just the start of wide-ranging research into these remarkable habitats from the sea floor.
53:10And a first step in bringing these structures, and the stories they tell, to the public.
53:16After they are thoroughly studied, the chimneys will travel to New York City, to the American Museum of Natural History, for permanent display.
53:35It is not just the powerful science to be done, but the idea of bringing it home to people to understand why we do what we do, what the questions are we are asking, and what the answers may be in our best imagination.
53:54And with a structure from the sea floor, we can begin to tell the story about how the Earth works and how volcanoes can support life.
54:03So, the recovery of the object is the beginning of telling the story, and the beginning of doing the research.
54:09It's not the end.
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56:36What about the