Video Shows Never-Before-Seen Part Of Antarctic Ocean Floor Explored By Greenpeace

The ocean is vast and mostly unexplored, but researchers with Greenpeace International recently made their way to a part of it that was previously undiscovered. The organization released footage of part of the seafloor in the Antarctic where humans have never been, said a release from Greenpeace International.

There researchers involved in the expedition found an abundance of sea life and say that this is reason enough to establish an ocean sanctuary in that part of the world. The organization is advocating for a sanctuary in the Antarctic that would cover 1.8 million square kilometers, nearly 700,000 square miles.

The region helps sustain the ecosystem that helps keep penguins, whale, seals and other marine life alive but researchers worry that the landscape is in danger due to the warming climate and industrial fishing in the area, says the petition for the sanctuary.

Arctic Sunrise, the ship Greenpeace used for a three-month-long expedition in the Antarctic carried the researchers around the region. Researchers explored the seafloor in pairs in a small submarine that also allowed them to take photos and videos of the seafloor.

“This is an early stage of the research work we are doing, but there are clear indications of a vulnerable marine ecosystem in the initial footage gathered at the seabed,” Susanne Lockhart a biologist who took the submarine down to the seafloor, said in a Greenpeace release.

The group is planning to do more research to further understand that part of the ocean and to decide which area needs the most protection and to build the case for a sanctuary, Lockhart added. As of January, the proposed plan for the sanctuary was backed by the German Government and was submitted to the European Union. However, it won’t be considered until the Antarctic Ocean Commission convenes in October.

The petition for the creation of the sanctuary has more than half a million signatures already according to Greenpeace.