Digital Still Camera V16

Only very rarely has there ever been long-term (~1-year) imagery taken of methane seep and hydrothermal vent sites, yet the information digital stills provide is crucial to understanding how these venting systems evolve and their linkages to biology. For example, there is little information about how bacterial and clam communities at methane seeps change over time, or how animal communities at vent sites change at temporal scales of minutes, hours, and days.

In 2014 a high-definition digital still camera was deployed at the Endurance Offshore 585-m site (LV01C) to study benthic organisms and those swimming by within the water column. Another camera was installed at a diffuse flow site on the El Gordo chimney in the International District hydrothermal field within Axial Volcano's caldera (Site MJ03C). At MJ03C, there a vent fluid sampler, a DNA sampler, and mass spectrometer were installed that allow time-series measurements of fluid, temperature, and chemistry correlated to digital still imagery of changing animal and environmental conditions. The camera will take a high-definition still image every 1 second Also in 2014, cameras were installed at Southern Hydrate Ridge (MJ01B), at the 200m platform at Slope Base (PC01A), the 200m Axial Base Platform (PC03A), and the Endurance nearshore benthic package (MJ01C).