Port Aransas South Jetty (Port Aransas, Tex.), Vol. 33, No. 04, Ed. 1 Thursday, January 23, 2003 Page: 4 of 20
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PAGE 4A Thursday, January 23, 2005
Island Life
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Pori Aransas South Jetty
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Boccie on the beach
These four couples enjoyed a game of boccie ball on the beach
in front of Beachgate Condominiums Jan. 21. They were taking
Staff photo by Murray Judson
advantage of the spring-like weather with lots of sunshine, cool
breezes and a gentle surf.
UTMSI researcher discovers first
hydrothermal vents in Arctic Ocean
AUSTIN — A geologically sluggish
region in the Arctic Ocean turns out
to have hot spots of activity, accord-
ing to the first study of the Gakkel
Ridge that runs near the North Pole.
The study led hy marine scientist Dr.
Hedy Edmonds of The University
of Texas Marine Science Institute in
Port Aransas revealed that the ridge
where two tectonic plates meet has
at least nine hydrothermal vents
releasing hot water as a result of
volcanic activity.
“I never in my wildest dreams
thought we’d see the extent of ac-
tivity we saw in the Arctic Ocean,”
said Edmonds, an assistant profes-
sor of marine science and a hydro-
thermal vent expert.
Edmonds is lead author of an ar-
ticle about the Gakkel vents that
appeared Jan. 16 in the journal
Nature. About half as many vents
were expected to be found along
the Gakkel Ridge, an underwater
volcanic mountain chain that
snakes for 1,100 miles from north
of Greenland to Siberia.
The finding changes scientists’ un-
derstanding of the way hydrother-
mal vents are globally distributed. It
also has implications for the way heat
and chemicals are exchanged be-
tween the Earth’s mantle, the crust
overlying the mantle, and oceans, as
well as for the way the Earth’s crust
forms when tectonic plates pull apart
slowly.
Hydrothermal vents are often sur-
rounded by rich underwater ecosys-
tems, supported by micro-organisms
that survive on chemicals in the
vents. Because the Gakkel Ridge is
isolated from its counterparts in
other oceans, these new Arctic eco-
systems also likely contain previously
unidentified organisms, which
Edmonds and other scientists hope
to discover during future expedi-
tions.
Hydrothermal vents develop along
mid-ocean ridges when tectonic
plates pull apart, which allows mol-
ten material from the Earth’s mantle
to edge upward. Water circulating
through rocks that form the ocean
floor absorbs heat from the molten
material, with the water escaping the
Earth’s interior in scalding hot vents.
The water can reach 350 degrees
Celsius (662 degrees Fahrenheit),
and contains chemicals on which
specialized microbes thrive.
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Dr. Hedy Edmonds
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The Gakkel Ridge, which is the
slowest spreading of all midocean
ridges, was expected to have about
four vents based on a previous
theory. The theory postulated that
slow-moving ridges should produce
less molten material and heat to fuel
the formation of hydrothermal vents
than their faster-spreading counter-
parts. Based on the 2001 cruise re-
sults, hot spots of volcanic activity
likely make up for the low level of
heat found along much of the ridge.
No one had previously looked for
hydrothermal vents on the Gakkel
Ridge because of the time and ex-
pense involved in breaking surface
ice to analyze the water below.
Edmonds searched the ridge for
vents as an extra scientist on a nine-
week research cruise in summer
2001 on the U.S. Coast Guard cut-
ter Healy. The Healy and a compan-
ion German icebreaker were being
used hv geologists to dredge rocks
from the ocean floor to study how
the Earth’s crust forms.
Whenever the geologists on the
Healy lowered their dredging equip-
ment, Edmonds and her colleagues
attached a recording device to its
steel cable to test the water at differ-
ent depths for increases in tempera-
ture or parriolev that indicate a
nearby hydrothermal vent. Vents
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eluding iron oxide particles, which
are rare in surrounding ocean wa-
ter. The water from a vent initially
stays together to form what is called
a plume, allowing its characteristics
to he measured.
Edmonds obtained 145 water
“profiles” and located nine hydro-
thermal vents to within a few miles
based on the signals of ocean tem-
peratures and suspended sediments
as the Healy cruised along. She also
pegged three other areas as likely
vent locations.
“Eighty-tw'O percent of our water
profiles had signatures of plumes in
them,” Edmonds said.
During the cruise, the geologists
also mapped the ocean floor along
the ridge, which allowed Edmonds
to confirm that the vents were lo-
cated in geologic features where
hydrothermal vents would likely
occur.
As further confirmation, she and
colleague David Graham of Oregon
State University deployed a more
specialized piece of equipment to
measure additional water character-
istics associated with vent plumes.
Super Bowl Sunday -
Let the senior class of Port
Aransas High School cook your
Superbowl Sunday dinner.
Rick Kalke’s famous barbecue
chicken will highlight the fundraiser
set for Sunday.
Tickets cost $6 each and are avail-
able in advance from senior students
or at the high school office located
on the first floor. Tickets also will
he available at the door.
The event sold out in 2002, so the
class has increased the number that
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Nautical Gifts & Accessories for the Home
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Hydrothermal vents is
lecture topic Wednesday
Hydrothermal vents is the topic
of the first of the 2003 Laura
Randall Schweppe Endowed Leture
Series in Marine Science scheduled
for Wednesday.
The lecture, by Dr. Stacy Kim,
adjunct professor at Moss Landing
Marine Laboratories in Moss Land-
ing, Calif., will he at 7 p.m in the
University of Texas Marine Science
Institute (UTMSI) Visitor Center
auditorium.
Hydrothermal vents are oases of
abundant life in the deep sea, where
seawater that is modified by contact
with magma provides energy to sus-
tain unique ecosystems. Vents are
distributed like archipelagos across
the deep sea floor, and each vent
persists for only a limited time be-
fore volcanic events or earthquakes
restructure the sea floor. Vent or-
ganisms can only survive near hy-
drothermal vents and many are at-
tached to the sea floor and unable
to move as adults. Thus, a central
question in vent ecology has been
how do these species survive despite
the temporary and shifting nature
of the vent habitat?
Kim has been a benthic ecologist
and adjunct professor at the Moss
Landing Marine Laboratories since
1996. She received her bachelor of
science degree in biology from the
University of California at Los An-
geles, and her Ph.D. in biological
oceanography from the Massachu-
setts Institute of Technology and the
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institu-
tion in 1996. Her research has taken
her from Antarctica to the Arctic
Ocean, and from coastal regions to
the deep sea, where she studies the
organisms that live at mid-ocean
ridge hot springs. Her research is
focused on the role of disturbance
in structuring communities.
PHOTO CHARTS
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forth for
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One Side Shows Entire Redfish Bay Seagrass Area
Back Side Shows Lighthouse Lakes Trails
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361-749-5131
Groundhog Day Shadow Stroll
slated Feb. 2 at Roberts Point Park
The second annual Groundhog
Day Shadow Stroll, slated for Feb
2, will be around Roberts Point
Park.
Strollers will walk a mile around
the park as they look for the elu-
sive groundhog, according to
Rachael King, special projects co-
ordinator for the sponsoring Park:
and Recreation Department.
Those participating will meet a
2 p.m. at the flagpole near the mail
pavilion, King said.
Refreshments will be served af
ter the walk, whether the ground
hog is found or not, King said.
Amanda Safford named to
Schreiner U. President’s List
Amanda Safford, daughter ot the
Rev. Richard and Mrs. Richard
Safford of Port Aransas, was named
to the President’s List at Schreiner
University in Kerrville.
She completed her first semester
with a 4.0 grade point average.
In order to be named to the list, a[
student must earn at least a 3.7 grad J
point average and have completed
at least 12 hours credit for the sej
mester.
Safford graduated from Port
Aransas High School in 2001.
The device, called a CTD (conduc-
tivity-temperature-depth) cast, wras
lowered into the ocean depths at six
locations along the ridge.
The CTD cast included 24 bottles
for obtaining water samples at vari-
ous depths. Edmonds, Graham and
British researchers Douglas
Connelly and Chris German from
the Southampton Oceanography
Centre, analyzed the samples after
the cruise, and discovered high con-
centrations of manganese and other
vent-associated chemicals at sites
that matched Edmonds’ earlier find-
ings.
“With these additional measure-
ments, we could say with certainty
that this water was coming from
hydrothermal vents," Edmonds
said.
Don’t be fridge ‘Raider’;
give seniors your ‘Bucs’
will be available.
Funds raised pay for the annual
senior class trip.
“The money raised from the bar-
becue dinner is enough to take care
of all expenses, so the seniors really
appreciate the community’s support
for this fun annual dinner,” Cheri
Horner, senior class president, said.
The dinner will be served from
11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at H.G. Olsen El-
ementary School cafeteria. To-go
orders will be available.
Bird's Nest
1 Hour Photo & Gifts
1305 S. Alister (2 blocks south of Ave. G) Port Aransas
9 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. Monday - Saturday
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Quality Photo Finishing
Collectible Prints
Frames
Photo Albums pSfTH0&1
Pentax Cameras MtJ:
AGFA
Photo Accessories
Tripods
Field Guides
Pentax Binoculars
NOTHING ESCAPES AGFA FILM
Now Offering Advantix and Digital Imaging
Port Aransas Community Theatre
2003 Winter Season Show's
Seating for the Community Theatre
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Stage
Reserved seat tickets are on sale now at Art Center for the
Islands, 323 N. Alister, in Port Aransas. Go in person to
select your seats or call 361-749-7334 to reserve tickets.
(Tickets can only be purcheased on Mondays, Tuesdays
& Wednesdays in person or via phone between the hours
of 11:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.) Phoned in reservations can be
paid for at the door the night of the performance by cash or
check. Those tickets must be claimed and paid for at least 15
minutes prior to curtain time or they may be sold to anyone
waiting at the door to purchase tickets. Any available seats
| will always be sold at the door the night of the performance.
HOT OFF THE PRESS!
Not all fish tales are lies
This book legendary Port
Aransas Fishing Guide Barney XXXJX-Ii. J S-J
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Farley details the memorable
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as guide to President Franklin
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concerns about ecology UfFI H'|| -I*W M
before 1960. /
Farley was not satisfied to
simply lament the disappear-
ance of the once-beautiful
tarpon, he strongly voiced his
views on the need for conser-
vation.
Many of the problems he described are still problems
today, but some of his solutions have been adopted.
Anyone who cares about fishing and the health of
Texas’ coastal and Gulf Waters will find an authoritative
and completely engaging voice in Barney Farley's book.
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PLUS $4.50 FOR SHIPPING
141 W. Cotter, Port Aransas, Tx 78373
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Judson, Mary. Port Aransas South Jetty (Port Aransas, Tex.), Vol. 33, No. 04, Ed. 1 Thursday, January 23, 2003, newspaper, January 23, 2003; Port Aransas, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth662837/m1/4/?rotate=270: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Ellis Memorial Library.