The discovery of metallic minerals in the deep and dark corners of the ocean that can produce oxygen in the absence of sunlight has provoked considerable controversy among scientists.
The discovery was detailed described in the journal Nature Geoscience in July 2024. It could revolutionize our understanding of the origin of life on Earth. The study may also influence the intentions of mining companies seeking to start extracting precious metals from the ocean.
According to the researchers themselves, metal minerals the size of potatoes are capable of producing a sufficient amount of electric current for splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen. Andrew Sweetman, a researcher from the Scottish Association for Marine Science, who was the first to record the presence of oxygen at a depth of 4,000 meters in the Pacific Ocean, called this oxygen «dark».
The discovery calls into question the usual views that life on Earth began with the production of oxygen by living organisms through photosynthesis using sunlight about 2.7 billion years ago. A number of ecologists argue that the discovery of so-called «dark oxygen» demonstrates how little we know about life in the deep oceans.
Environmentalists insist that mining companies should reconsider their plans to extract these metals from the oceans, as this has unpredictable consequences for local ecosystems.
«Greenpeace has long campaigned to end deep-sea mining in the Pacific Ocean because of the damage it can cause to fragile deep-sea ecosystems This incredible discovery underscores the urgency of this call,» the organization emphasizes.
Mysterious oxygen has been discovered in the Clarion-Clipperton area — the deep Pacific region between Mexico and Hawaii. Scattered across the ocean floor at a depth of 4 km, the metal nodules consist of manganese, nickel, and cobalt. This is of interest to mining companies because these metals are used in the production of batteries for electric vehicles and renewable energy technologies.
The study was partially funded by The Metals Company, a Canadian deep-sea mining company that sought to assess the environmental impact of mining these metallic minerals. Representatives of the company strongly criticized the study Andrew Sweetman, stating that their work has many methodological flaws.
Environmental Protection Manager at The Metals Company Michael Clarke said that the results obtained by the researchers could be explained by the use of poor scientific instruments and poor quality scientific data. Many scientists have also rejected the conclusions drawn by Sweetman and his team based on the results of the study.
«He did not provide clear evidence for his observations and hypotheses After the publication, many questions remained. Therefore, now the scientific community needs to conduct similar experiments, etc., and either prove or disprove it», — notes biogeochemist at the Helmholtz Center for Ocean Research GEOMAR in Kiel Matthias Heckel.
Sam Svetman said that he was preparing a scientific substantiation of the conclusions of his research.
Researchers discover «battery stones» producing oxygen at the bottom of the ocean
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