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Science Quickly

‘Dark Oxygen’ Is Coming from These Ocean Nodules, and We Don’t Know How

Science Quickly

Scientific American

Science

4.2639 Ratings

🗓️ 21 August 2024

⏱️ 17 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Polymetallic nodules litter a stretch of ocean between Mexico and Hawaii. They contain metals, such as manganese and cobalt, that mining companies want to use for battery production. Researchers recently found that these seafloor blobs might make their own oxygen—and no one knows exactly how. Scientific American’s associate news editor Allison Parshall explains the hype behind this “dark oxygen.” Recommended reading: ‘Dark Oxygen’ Discovered Coming from Mineral Deposits on Deep Seafloor https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/dark-oxygen-discovered-coming-from-mineral-deposits-on-deep-seafloor/ Earth’s Coral Reefs Face a New, Deadly Mass Bleaching. They Can Still Be Saved https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/earths-coral-reefs-face-a-new-deadly-mass-bleaching-they-can-still-be-saved/  E-mail us at [email protected] if you have any questions, comments or ideas for stories we should cover! Discover something new every day: subscribe to Scientific American and sign up for Today in Science, our daily newsletter.  Science Quickly is produced by Rachel Feltman, Fonda Mwangi, Kelso Harper, Madison Goldberg and Jeff DelViscio. This episode was hosted by Rachel Feltman with guest and associate news editor Allison Parshall. Shayna Posses and Aaron Shattuck fact-check our show. The theme music was composed by Dominic Smith. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

Understanding the human body is a team effort. That's where the Yachtel group comes in.

0:05.8

Researchers at Yachtolt have been delving into the secrets of probiotics for 90 years.

0:11.0

Yachtold also partners with nature portfolio to advance gut microbiome science through the global grants for gut health, an investigator-led research program.

0:20.1

To learn more about Yachtolt, visit yawcult.co.

0:22.7

.jp. That's Y-A-K-U-L-T.C-O.J-P. When it comes to a guide for your gut, count on Yacult.

0:34.4

Need a breath of fresh air? Try looking at the bottom of the ocean. A new study suggests that

0:40.5

enigmatic little lumps of stuff that littered the seafloor might make their own oxygen in the dark of the deep.

0:48.1

But these little nodules are also rich in metals, and mining companies are vying to harvest them to make lithium ion batteries.

0:55.0

Scientists say we've got to figure out how these little nuggets impact the ecosystem of the sea, stat.

1:00.0

For Scientific American Science quickly, this is Rachel Feltman.

1:04.0

I'm here with Siam's own Alison Partial to hear more about this so-called dark oxygen.

1:15.6

Okay, so scientists have found something freaky at the bottom of the ocean.

1:21.6

Alison, tell me more. What's going on?

1:24.6

When are things at the bottom of the ocean not freaky? That's what I want to know.

1:28.3

In this case, it's not some very strange,

1:31.3

blobular fish or something with a lot of teeth.

1:34.3

It's actually something, by all accounts, non-living.

1:38.3

They basically found oxygen gas being produced in total darkness on the sea floor,

1:43.3

about 13,000 feet below the surface.

1:46.4

So we're talking about a very particular region of the Pacific Ocean called the Clarion

1:51.1

Clipperton Zone.

1:52.1

If you can imagine, it's like this long stretch of ocean between Mexico and Hawaii.

...

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