HR: 1340h
AN: B13A-0179 INVITED     [Abstracts]
TI: Current Research at the Endeavour Ridge 2000 Integrated Studies Site
AU: * Butterfield, D A
EM: David.A.Butterfield@noaa.gov
AF: University of Washington, Joint Institute for the Study of the Atmosphere and Oceans, Box 357941, Seattle, WA 98195 United States
AU: Kelley, D S
AF: University of Washington, School of Oceanography, Box 357940, Seattle, WA 98195 United States
AU: Ridge 2000 Community, R
EM: ridge2000@psu.edu
AF: Ridge 2000 Program, Penn State University, 208 Mueller Lab, University Park, PA 16802 United States
AB: Integrated geophysical, geological, chemical, and biological studies are being conducted on the Endeavour segment with primary support from NSF, the W.M. Keck Foundation, and NSERC (Canada). The research includes a seismic network, physical and chemical sensors, high-precision mapping and time-series sampling. Several research expeditions have taken place at the Endeavour ISS in the past year. In June 2003, an NSF-sponsored cruise with R.V. {\ital T.G.Thompson}/ROV {\ital Jason2} installed microbial incubators in drill-holes in the sides of active sulfide chimneys and sampled rocks, fluids, and microbes in the Mothra and Main Endeavour Field (MEF). In July 2003, with {\ital Thompson/Jason2}, an NSF-LEXEN project at Baby Bare on Endeavour east flank conducted sampling through seafloor-penetrating probes, plus time-series sampling of fluids, microbes, and rocks at the MEF. In September 2003, with {\ital Thompson}/ROV {\ital ROPOS}, the Keck Proto-Neptune project installed a seismic network consisting of 1 broadband and 7 short-period seismometers, installation of chemical/physical sensors and time-series samplers for chemistry and microbiology in the MEF and Clam Bed sites, collection of rocks, fluids, animals, and microbes. In May/June 2004, an NSF-sponsored {\ital Atlantis/Alvin} cruise recovered sulfide incubators installed in 2003, redeployed a sulfide incubator, mapped MEF and Mothra vent fields with high-resolution Imagenix sonar, sampled fluids from MEF, Mothra, and Clam Bed, recovered year-long time-series fluid and microbial samplers from MEF and Clam Bed, recovered and installed hot vent temperature-resistivity monitors, cleaned up the MEF and deployed new markers at major sulfide structures. In August 2004, there were two MBARI/Keck-sponsored cruises with R.V. {\ital Western Flyer}/ROV {\ital Tiburon}. The first cruise completed the seismic network with addition of two more broadband seismometers and serviced all 7 short-period seismometers. {\ital Tiburon} then performed microbial and chemical investigations at MEF, Mothra, Sasquatch, and Middle Valley, collecting fluid, particle, and animal samples for culture and phylogenetic analysis. {\ital Tiburon} continued in late August/September with detailed petrological sampling. A Keck-sponsored {\ital Thompson/ROPOS} cruise in September continued work on chemical/physical sensor deployments and time-series chemical and microbial sampling. A graduate student workshop at Friday Harbor beginning October 2004 will analyze the first year of data from the seismic network and begin to correlate seismic activity with hydrothermal activity. The Endeavour ISS is still in a phase of data collection and sensor development, but moving toward data integration.
UR: http://www.ridge2000.org
DE: 3035 Midocean ridge processes
SC: Biogeosciences [B]
MN: 2004 AGU Fall Meeting