Overview
- Andrew Sweetman’s team presented two purpose-built landers rated to 11 kilometers depth and roughly 1,200 times surface pressure to investigate oxygen generation near polymetallic nodules.
- The mission will deploy new sensors to measure seafloor respiration, pH, and electrical activity, alongside an Aquatic Eddy Covariance lander to track oxygen flux across the seabed.
- Researchers plan to collect water, sediment cores, and nodules for lab analyses, including high-pressure experiments to test electrochemical and potential microbial pathways.
- The expedition is scheduled for May in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone, with initial indications expected within 24–48 hours after lander recovery and broader findings likely after the ship returns in June.
- The 2024 Nature Geoscience report remains contested, with critics citing possible instrument artifacts and non-detections; Sweetman’s group and GEOMAR plan method-comparison work later this year.