Hydrothermal vents in the deep ocean typically form along the mid-ocean ridges, such as the East Pacific Rise and the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. These are locations where two See more

Hydrothermal plumes are fluid entities that manifest where hydrothermal fluids are expelled into the overlying water column at active hydrothermal vent sites. As hydrothermal fluids … See more

Life has traditionally been seen as driven by energy from the sun, but deep-sea organisms have no access to sunlight, so biological communities around hydrothermal vents must depend on nutrients found in the dusty chemical deposits and … See more

Hydrothermal vents, in some instances, have led to the formation of exploitable mineral resources via the deposition of seafloor massive … See more

Some hydrothermal vents form roughly cylindrical chimney structures. These form from minerals that are dissolved in the vent fluid. When … See more

In 1949, a deep water survey reported anomalously hot brines in the central portion of the Red Sea. Later work in the 1960s confirmed … See more

Hydrothermal vents are distributed along the Earth's plate boundaries, although they may also be found at intra-plate locations such as hotspot … See more