Image courtesy of NOAA Ocean Exploration, Seascape Alaska. This unidentified specimen, photographed in the wet lab on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer, was seen and collected on August 30, 2023, during Dive 07 of the Seascape Alaska 5: Gulf of Alaska Remotely Operated Vehicle Exploration and Mapping expedition. While somewhat humbling to be stumped by this finding, it serves as a reminder of how little we know about our own planet and how much is left to learn and appreciate about our ocean.”

We likely won't learn more until we are able to get it into a laboratory setting where we can continue to pull from the collective expertise of the scientific community with more sophisticated tools than we are able to maintain on the ship. He elaborated, “While we were able to collect the 'golden orb' and bring it onto the ship, we still are not able to identify it beyond the fact that it is biological in origin.

'Isn’t the deep sea so delightfully strange?” said NOAA Ocean Exploration’s Sam Candio, expedition coordinator for the ongoing Seascape Alaska 5: Gulf of Alaska Remotely Operated Vehicle Exploration and Mapping expedition that the still-unidentified specimen was found on. Invoking almost fairytale-like imagery, the specimen has since been dubbed a “golden orb” and even a “golden egg,” by media outlets. While the find perplexed and inspired an air of creative imagination in many watching the dive live, it has also captured public imagination, inspiring a host of news articles across the country and beyond. As cameras zoomed in, scientists were stumped as to its identification, with initial thoughts ranging from a dead sponge attachment, to coral, to an egg casing.

A small hole or tear near its base revealed a similarly colored interior. Download largest version (mp4, 95.9 MB)Īmid a smattering of white sponges, this smooth, gold, dome-shaped specimen, a little over 10 centimeters (4 inches) in diameter, was tightly adhered to a rock. Video courtesy of NOAA Ocean Exploration, Seascape Alaska. The specimen was seen adhered to a rocky outcropping at a depth of about 3,300 meters (2 miles) and was collected via suction sampler for further study. This as-of-yet identified collection taken on Dive 07 (August 30, 2023) of the Seascape Alaska 5 expedition generated a lot of interest and curiosity from scientists, viewers, and beyond. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility.

Download the new Deep Work