Scientific expedition explores the deep sea of the South Atlantic at almost 6,000 meters deep

Fantástico boarded the Falcon ship, which is preparing to access a remote region of the deep sea in the South Atlantic for the first time. The scientific mission will bring together 25 researchers from five countries on a month and a half expedition to explore areas that reach almost 6 thousand meters deep. See the full report in the video above.

To investigate the ocean floor, scientists will use an unmanned, remotely operated robot. Adapted for scientific research, the equipment was designed to minimize interference in the marine environment and collect samples of rocks, sediments and organisms that live in the depths.

The mission seeks to uncover part of a universe that is still little known. According to researchers, only about a quarter of the ocean depths have been mapped to date. In regions where sunlight does not reach, species have developed unusual survival strategies, such as bioluminescence, used to attract prey, escape predators and even communicate.

The underwater robot pilot Leonardo follows the operation with high-resolution images obtained by the equipment's cameras. Missions can last up to 16 hours a day and require constant coordination between operators and scientists while collecting organisms and samples from the seabed.

The expedition's main target is the Romanche Fracture Zone, an extensive geological structure located in the Atlantic. The site is considered strategic for understanding the history of the separation between South America and Africa, which occurred around 200 million years ago.

The Brazilian coordinator of the mission states that the area has been widely studied from a geological point of view, but there is still a lack of direct observations on its biodiversity.

"There is an expectation that it will be a mega diverse region", stated the researcher.

Scientists also hope to map hydrothermal vents, where water heated by magma emerges through fissures in the ocean floor. These environments support their own ecosystems, powered by bacteria that use chemical compounds as a source of energy, instead of sunlight.

In addition to research, the mission will feature live internet broadcasts carried out by the Ocean Schmidt Institute. The public will be able to follow the discoveries in real time and interact with scientists through chats during the trip.

The researchers highlight that studying the deep sea is also a way of understanding the impacts of human action on extremely fragile ecosystems. According to them, damage caused by activities such as trawling, plastic pollution and climate change could take thousands of years to reverse or even become permanent.

"What little we know, we know that it is a slow system. Any destruction will take thousands of years to recover or it will never recover," warned one of the expedition's scientists.