These are the dominant fish group in at least five trenches worldwide. Organisms adapted to these pressures may experience metabolic problems when brought to the surface for study.The snailfishes, family Liparidae (Scorpaeniformes), have found notable success in the hadal zone from ~6,000-8,200 m. Some ocean species perform vertical migrations of 1,000 meters each day, experiencing a 100-atmosphere range of pressures with no harmful effects.ĭeep-sea pressures do affect chemical reaction rates somewhat, speeding up reactions.
Without gas-filled spaces like lungs or swim bladders, organisms in the great deep are less affected by pressure than we imagine. This is because most things living in the deep ocean are largely water and water is incompressible. That's a lot of pressure! Most organisms with gas-filled spaces (like humans) would be crushed by the pressures that other deep-sea life experience.Īt deep-sea depths, the pressure is unimaginable, yet many creatures have no problem living there. Travel to 2,000 meters below the ocean’s surface, and the pressure will be approximately 200 atmospheres. So, for example, at a depth of 100 meters, the pressure will be approximately 10 atmospheres or 10 times greater than the pressure at sea level. Pressure in the ocean increases about one atmosphere for every 10 meters of water depth.
As organisms with gas-filled spaces upon which we depend-lungs-we tend to focus on pressure at great ocean depths as a big deal.and with good reason. On land, we experience an internal pressure of one atmosphere (atm). Image courtesy of NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research. Many deep-sea organisms, such as this Enypniastes eximia sea cucumber, lack lungs or gas-filled spaces that make them more susceptible to the intense pressures of the deep ocean.
0 kommentar(er)
