In an unexpected twist, metal-rich nodules found on the seafloor are generating oxygen, new research suggests. This meager but steady supply of the vital gas may help support seafloor ecosystems in areas currently targeted for deep-sea mining, scientists say.
Scientists have long presumed that much of the dissolved oxygen in the deep sea was transported there from surface waters. It can be generated at the surface by plant life via photosynthesis or diffuse from the atmosphere as a result of wave action, says Andrew Sweetman, a deep-sea ecologist at the Scottish Association for Marine Science in Oban.
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