Skip to main content

The Challenger chasm, the deepest point of the ocean

Underwater trenches.The mysteries that extend in this world of oceanic silence and darkness is still a challenge for the human mind and its curiosity. The Challenger chasm, with its 10,994 meters, is the deepest point of the ocean, its distance exceeds even the height of our Everest.Can you imagine what kind of life should exist at those depths and under that pressure?

Only one man has been able to reach the 10,898 meters to tell us about its darkness and its wonders thanks to a sophisticated submarine, the Deepsea Challenger.His name? James Cameron .

The deepest abyss of our oceans

The Challenger chasm, the deepest point of the ocean

Wikipedia

Seeing the superior image we can already locate ourselves.We are in the Mariana Trench, in the western Pacific.This region has a length of 2,500 km and extends towards below to reach 10,994 meters.It may be even more, since the National Geographic often comments that the 11km descent can be exceeded.This interesting point on our planet has always been the target of multiple projects of research, in which the recklessness, but also the desire to discover and understand, have caused man to risk his life by descending into that cold, dark world and at a pressure 1095 times higher than that of the surface.

But let's look in detail at the story of the Challenger pit and man's attempts to unravel its abyssal secrets:

  • The name was given in 1872. It was the frigate of the British Royal Navy Challenger who organized some expeditions at that time, but without much success.His calculations to establish the depth of the abyss were completely wrong.
  • On March 23, 1875 , he turned he saw an attempt by two separate surveys, estimating that it should be about 8,184 meters.
  • In 1912, in Sir John Murray's book "The Depths of the Ocean" depths of the ocean) is a little closer to the figure we have now.Sir John himself is part of the expedition, then setting the distance at 9,636 meters.
  • We leave now to the year 1951. The British Royal Navy HMS Challenger once again organizes an expedition.An echo survey is used, establishing that the depth should be 10,900 meters.
  • The 23rd of January 1960 , a new adventure begins with the Swiss bathyscaphe Trieste, which the United States Navy has bought.Inside, goes the oceanographer Jacques Piccard, his father Auguste Piccard and Lieutenant Don Walsh.it served to see the medium and find out if there was any kind of life.
  • In 1984, the Japanese They are interested in the Challenger chasm and use a sonar.10,923 meters.
  • In 2009 there was a further descent into the abyss, with the Nereus.7, The depth this time was much wider 10,994.
  • In 2012 James Cameron surprised the world with his adventure.Thanks to Deepsea Challenger, down to 10,898, thus being the first person to descend solo to the lowest point on Earth.

So, so far, the depth of the Challenger pit is set at 10,994, but nobody denies that the possibility of this distance increases in the coming years.

Is there any kind of life in the Challenger chasm?

The Challenger chasm, the deepest point of the ocean

Macropinna microstoma

James Cameron himself described the pit as a lunar desert.As if he were the only inhabitant of that wilderness scenario, where he paranormal could assault him and At any moment, he could only see worms, blind worms adapted to that terrible pressure, the same one that abolished the submarine itself sinking one of the windows towards it.

Well, the really interesting thing happened last year, in 2013.A team of scientists from the University of Southern Denmark, the Center for Greenland Climate Research, the Scottish Marine Institute, the Japanese Agency for Marine and Terrestrial Science and Technology and the Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology, sent a new bathyscaphe-but this time with no one inside-discovering something amazing : the Challenger chasm is full of life.

The Challenger chasm, the deepest point of the ocean

What kind of life? You will ask yourself. Microbial life. To ensure that this was possible, what was done was to measure oxygen consumption.The data were shocking: in that chasm, oxygen consumption is much higher than on the surface.It has not yet been possible to determine what type of microbes can exist in that recondito place-abyssal animals, such as the Macropinna microstoma or transparent head fish-only appear in higher strata, but what is found in those deeper, colder and deeper layers.hidden, it has excited the entire scientific community...and curious as we do.

Life makes its way in any scenario, whatever their conditions.Really fascinating.

Do you want to accompany James Cameron on his descent to the Challenger pit? Here is the video.

Image: silvio Pastore Stocchi

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The creepy king of rats

In Mysterious today we want to tell you about a phenomenon at least creepy .It's something that for a long time was thought to be nothing more than a legend, but now we know that it occurs in the animal world naturally, but it does not stop horrifying us.It is " the king of rats ". The Legend of Rattenkonig, the king of the rats The legend of the rat king or rattenkonig arises in Germany and is documented for the first time in the XVI century. It was believed that it was a being formed by several rats that formed a new living being with multiple heads and on which the dominant individual, the king , was installed. He got food from his subjects and everything he asked for.The Europeans of the time considered the vision of one of these phenomena as a warning of future misfortunes. The truth behind the legends For a long time it was believed that after this legend there was nothing true and that the specimens that were exhibited were gross mani...

Rasputin's most IMPACTING prophecies

Surely you have heard or read on some occasion about the famous “crazy monk”, better known as Rasputin, and that is that mystical Russian healer and prophet was one of the most influential people of the last days of the Romanov Dynasty. This peculiar character left us some interesting and not very encouraging prophecies about what awaits humanity , do you want to know them? The most IMPACTANT prophecies of Rasputin Many claim that the premonitory gift, among many others, of Grigori Yefimovich Rasputin (1869-1916) was very real, so today we bring you some of his most terrifying prophecies , read on and find out what the future holds for us according to the "crazy monk". 1."The poisons will embrace the Earth like a fiery lover .And in the Mortal embrace, the heavens will have the halite of death, and the sources will give no more than bitter waters, and many of these waters will be more toxic that the rotten blood of the snake.Men will die because of the air, b...

The unknown weapon of the ancient Greeks: the "voodoo dolls"

There are many movies and television series, including documentaries, that illustrate practices and witchcraft with « vudu dolls «.These references make us relate these disturbing dolls to the culture of some areas of Africa and the Caribbean, but did you know that this kind of spells were also performed in the Ancient Greece ? Black magic in Ancient Greece Most of us know the pantheon of gods of Ancient Greece, headed by Zeus, who supposedly inhabited Olympus.What we did not know is that, while worshiping these gods, they were realized specific speeches of a magical nature, among them: divination, curses, the manufacture of vudu dolls and the necromancy .Those who practiced it had to be, by force, the first sorcerers and witches in history. Is there evidence of these activities? There are.In the excavations of recent times " tablets of the curse " have been found-like that of Silchester, which the writer Tolkien knew so well-and "vudu dolls" ...

The world of search engines for "orbs"

In Mysterious we already told you about this unique phenomenon that, day by day, seems to be gaining more strength.What are the orbs, orbs , not yet It is completely clear and does not have a unanimous explanation that everyone likes.However, defined with objectivity, we could say that they are those luminous spheres of different colors that are only captured through the photographs and that are not visible to the naked eye. You may see this subject with skepticism, or you may have captured an orb yourself and have that exceptional photograph that you keep with great affection.Anyway, it is an aspect always interesting with great defenders and faithful detractors. Today in Mysterious we want to talk to you about those people almost obsessed with capturing orbs.Can you imagine what their lives are like? In my spare time I am an "orb search engine" The theme of the orbs is known worldwide, so you can discover laugh online portals from the most diverse countries,...

Sucubo | The seductive female demon of the night

Sucubo .Behind this disturbing term and the attractive image that defines these women, there is actually a very particular type of demon that has its origins in the Middle Ages.with sexuality, a mechanism that this being uses to obtain its true objective: the vital energy of men. We advance you since, as in the case of other nightmare creatures, I tried to give one more explanation or less logical to natural phenomena, although not necessarily pleasant, such as night pollution or sleep paralysis.As you will see, it is more reassuring to assume them as a bodily reaction, than like this diabolical being that should have greatly frightened the men and women of ancient times. Content Index Sucubo.The female demon of the night This is a classic within demonology and legend, the sucubo is a fascinating creature that today we want to bring to you in Myst erious.Prepared? Just a warning: if you are a man, you should be very careful in those hours of the night when you fall asleep in ...

The mystery of the indecipherable sword of the thirteenth century: Any ideas?

From the British Museum they ask us for help and collaboration , but yes, only to those who have deep knowledge about medieval times, seasoned by ingenuity and skills to solve mysteries. The enigmatic sword that heads and illustrates this article is now a challenge for the most privileged minds in everything that deals with ancient history, swords and, above all, cryptology.No one knows with sure what its origin is, or what meaning the characters contain in its sheet. If your heart and mind have something of Sherlock Holmes, as well as Indiana Jones, We invite you to know all the facts about this unique weapon.And if like us, you are a simple curious mystery , do not miss this article either. The sword of the river Witham and his strange inscription We will start by putting ourselves in antecedents.Our protagonist was found in a river of Linco lnshire in 1825 .It was buried, not embedded in a rock like Excalibur, but it is no less interesting. In fact, it is quite a ...

Super famous curses: Tecumseh and Sinatra

History has left us with a lot of curses: the Kennedy and death seem inseparable, a lot of artists have not passed the 27 years and even some movies seem to have a curse.But there are many other amazing curses, so let's meet some of the most famous in history . The Curse of Tecumseh Who knows if Kennedy's death is related or not with this curse launched by Tecumseh, the leader of the Shawnee tribe.The native leader fought in 1811 against the American army at the Battle of Tippecanoe, in Indiana, against the men of William Harrison, governor of Indiana.Tecumseh's brother, Tenskwatawa , better known as The Prophet, launched a curse on Harrison and the future tenants of the White House. In 1836, when Harrison s and he was running for President, The Prophet predicted that he would lose the elections but that he would win in 1840 although he would die before finishing his term .And so it was.Harrison lost the 1836 elections to Martin Van Buren, but four years later he ...

The curious and strange phenomenon of "Lost Time"

Possibly, the phenomenon of "Lost time" is one of the most disturbing and strange in the paranormal world.Recently we talked to you, for example, about the haunted forest of Hoia-Baciu, in Transylvania , and like many people who entered such a unique scenario, they had the feeling that it had only been a few minutes since they had crossed the forest, when in fact, it had been hours and even days, in some cases. This phenomenon, experience or simple sensation is called "lost time." And the explanations they give us about these situations are really interesting, but also scary. Do you want to meet them? Where has my "lost time" gone? At first glance, it may sound a bit like the famous title of the book by Marcel Proust. But no, in this case our intention is not to go "in search of that lost time" , but the emotions and feelings Entities experienced in this chasm of uncertainty towards those who suffer this situation in the first perso...