Deep-Sea Divers Find Abandoned Ships, Lost Cities, and Strange Creatures Below The Waves

The planet’s seas take up 71% of its total surface area and hold 97% of all its water. Bored Panda has gathered together a list of strange discoveries from beneath the waves, ranging from odd sea creatures to sunken vessels and a single-use plastic bag found at the very lowest point on Earth.

Strange Creatures of the Deep

A Pacific stargazer fish has turned up buried in the Indo-Pacific seabed, one of the strangest discoveries made so far. This species ambushes prey with only its eyes and mouth exposed. A separate image captures a bioluminescent octopus in the depths of the North Atlantic.

The giant isopod serves as proof that deep-sea gigantism exists. Its home is far beneath the waves, where it encounters conditions entirely distinct from those above. The ocean thus reveals life forms that have no equal upon dry land.

A single image captures an octopus feeding upon a dead whale carcass in the deep ocean. The whale’s remains serve as sustenance for the octopus amid the darkness beneath the surface.

Sunken Vessels and Strange Sounds

A photograph captures the bow of a sunken vessel, appearing as though it were some underwater creature, distorted by time and pressure beneath the sea.

Decades after their voyage, rockets from the Apollo 11 mission still rest at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean, preserved as remnants of a journey long past.

The Upsweep noise remains unexplained. It was first recorded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in 1991, and it sounds like “a wail steadily rising in pitch.” The source sits somewhere between New Zealand and South America, and its cause has never been identified.

Ancient Ruins or Natural Rock?

Discovered by a scuba diver in 1986, the Yonaguni Monument is a strange rock formation off the Japanese island of Yonaguni. It has a spiral “staircase,” etchings, and stacked sandstone blocks. Some wonder if it is the remains of an ancient civilization. Others say it is naturally formed. No one knows the truth.

The Deepest Point on Earth

The deepest point in the whole ocean is the Mariana Trench, and there, at a depth of 35,754 feet, a single-use plastic bag was found thrown away. The discovery happened 28 years ago, on May 20th, 1998.

Safety Tips for Swimmers

The ocean carries dangers for swimmers, and the American Red Cross advises people to stay within a lifeguarded area whenever possible. It is never wise to enter the water alone, no matter how skilled a swimmer a person may be. Physical exertion should also be kept moderate, since pushing oneself too hard can turn a pleasant swim into a hazardous one.

What We Don’t Know About the Ocean

We don’t know exactly how many species live under the sea. It’s estimated that 91% of them have yet to be classified. More than 80% of the ocean is still unmapped and unexplored.

That list serves as a prompt for the reader to consider how much the ocean still holds back from plain sight. It suggests there is always more to discover beneath the surface of the water.

“The first thing is that Earth formed in a region of space where there was material like rocks and things like that, but also water in some form. The second theory is that Earth formed in a region of space where it was too hot to have any kind of water. And the water that we have on Earth now was delivered post-formation by other bodies in the Solar System.”

The remark originates with a scientist in meteorite research at the Natural History Museum in London, who offered it while discussing how Earth may have obtained its oceans.

Source material: “62 Incredible Things People Have Discovered At The Bottom Of The Ocean,” Bored Panda.

creatures · deep sea · Discovery · exploration · ocean