A team of researchers has discovered that some metals found in the deep ocean floor produce oxygen gas at a depth of about 4 kilometers beneath the water's surface. As reported by the American news network "CNN," Professor Andrew Suydam, a professor at the Scottish Marine Sciences Association and head of the Seafloor Environment and Biochemistry group, stated that the new research he conducted alongside several researchers demonstrated evidence of "dark oxygen" production at the seabed, around 4,000 meters deep.
The research focused on "nodules," which are composed of several metals and are the size of a potato, and are described by specialists as "geological batteries." According to Suydam, these nodules are a potential basis for generating dark oxygen at the bottom of the oceans without any assistance from living organisms. This is the first time scientists have observed oxygen generation without the intervention of any living beings.
This exciting discovery will have significant implications for how deep-sea mining will evolve in the future and may lead to important answers regarding the origins of life on Earth. Experts say that deep-sea mining could cause irreversible damage to the underwater environment and may disrupt the way carbon is stored in the ocean, thereby contributing to the climate crisis.
