Metallic nodules scattered across the seabed in the Indian and Pacific oceans are a source of oxygen for nearby marine life – a finding that could upend our understanding of the deep ocean.

Researchers say the polymetallic nodules that mining companies hope to harvest from the deep-ocean seafloor may be a source of oxygen for the animals, plants and bacteria that live there. This ...

Now a new study suggests the nodules are able to produce oxygen about 4,000 m below the ocean’s surface (Nat. Geosci. 2024, DOI: 10.1038/s41561-024-01480-8). Credit: Camille Bridgewater (2024) ...

The polymetallic nodules that mining companies hope to harvest from the deep-ocean seafloor may be a source of oxygen for the animals, plants and bacteria that live there.

The discovery of this deep-sea oxygen, dubbed "dark oxygen," is the first time scientists have ever observed oxygen being generated without the involvement of organisms and challenges what we know ...

"We need to rethink how to mine these materials, so that we do not deplete the oxygen source for deep-sea life," noted study co-author Franz Geiger, a Professor of Chemistry at Northwestern University ...

Scientists discovered "dark oxygen" produced by deep-sea polymetallic nodules deep below sea level, redefining our understanding of ocean and early Earth life.

This discovery that the nodules may be a source of oxygen for the deep sea has major implications in terms of how life on our planet may have begun. "For aerobic life to begin on the planet ...

Sea-floor nodules raise oxygen levels in the deep ocean, suggesting they may have a valuable role in ecosystems and adding to concerns about the impact of deep-sea mining By Madeleine Cuff 22 July ...

Researchers say the polymetallic nodules that mining companies hope to harvest from the deep-ocean seafloor may be a source of oxygen for the animals, plants and bacteria that live there. This ...

New research suggests that polymetallic nodules on the deep-sea floor may produce oxygen, a conclusion that could have enormous consequences for mining companies. Above, Gerard Barron, chairman ...