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Schmidt Ocean Institute
@schmidtocean.bsky.social
Boldly exploring our unknown Ocean
ROV pilots filmed this giant phantom jelly, or Stygiomedusa gigantea, at 253 meters during an ROV descent to explore the Colorado-Rawson submarine canyon wall. #ArgentinianDeepSeeps

January 2, 2026 at 12:07 AM
Let your party streamers fly like a ctenophore! As the year draws to an end, we’re celebrating a year of supporting international teams of scientists on board R/V Falkor (too) off the coasts of Antarctica, the South Sandwich Islands, Argentina, & Uruguay. Happy New Year to all!

January 1, 2026 at 12:07 AM
Freckled catshark, Scyliorhinus haeckelii, is a common species of shark in Uruguayan waters, according to Dr. David Ebert. He suspects the fish were interested in a parasite dangling off the catshark. Filmed at 227m during #UruguaySUB200
December 31, 2025 at 12:23 AM
We are grieving the loss of Kristina Gjerde, who passed away yesterday, 26 December 2025, of cancer. She was a lawyer — graceful, thoughtful, and elegantly articulate — who championed the Ocean, particularly the deep sea. Read our full statement here: www.linkedin.com/feed/update/...
December 27, 2025 at 5:34 PM
Our #ArgentinianDeepSeeps expedition video is out — learn about bubble hunting off the coast of Argentina!

youtu.be/_1_q7O7kGAE?...
Bubble Hunting | Life in Extremes — Cold Seeps of Argentina
YouTube video by Schmidt Ocean
youtu.be
December 26, 2025 at 5:58 PM
Like a tiny heart beating in time, this deep-sea jellyfish — Periphylla — pulses through the Ocean’s midwater. ROV pilots filmed this luminescent beauty at 920m along Argentina’s continental shelf, off the coast of Buenos Aires #ArgentinianDeepSeeps Credit: ROV SuBastian / Schmidt Ocean Institute
December 23, 2025 at 9:27 PM
An unexpected feast! ROV pilots filmed this during the #ArgentinianDeepSeeps expedition. Read the full caption about whalefalls & their role in the deep Ocean on Insta: www.instagram.com/reel/DSlQw1J...
December 22, 2025 at 10:56 PM
Season's greetings! We were inspired by the children from S. America who celebrated Divestreams w/creativity & enthusiasm. Use ROV SuBastian explore the gifts on this imaginary seafloor, recreated in a child’s room. Explore the interactive card here: 2025.schmidtocean.co
December 22, 2025 at 5:46 PM
During Dive 878, the #ArgentinianDeepSeeps science team studied & sampled an active pockmark on the seafloor, where liquids & gases were escaping. Their goal: the first & most comprehensive exploration of cold seeps, one of the least-studied deep-ocean ecosystems in SW Atlantic.
December 19, 2025 at 9:51 PM
ROV pilots filmed this smooth swimming salp at 324m during #AsgardArchaea expedition off the coast of Uruguay. Credit: ROV SuBastian / Schmidt Ocean Institute
December 13, 2025 at 12:37 AM
Sliding into the weekend like this slender fish!

Seen during the #AsgardArchaea expedition, ROV pilots captured this footage at 2,180 m. The international team of scientists collected sediment & water samples in their search for the origins of eukaryotic and complex cells.
December 6, 2025 at 1:43 AM
The #AsgardArchaea team observed breathtaking wildlife in Uruguayan waters via the cameras on the Schmidt Ocean Institute's deep-sea robot — ROV SuBastian.
https://youtu.be/uM0wKYb1kus
www.youtube.com
youtu.be
December 5, 2025 at 1:29 AM
In January 2025, R/V Falkor (too) carried the #AntarcticClimateConnections expedition team through the famed Drake Passage, into the Bellingshausen Sea. Here's a link to our recently released short film, "Crossing the Divide:" https://youtu.be/C4e3GZkGwxk?si=wccBT82dgY46Y-de
December 4, 2025 at 12:10 AM
That’s a wrap for #AsgardArchaea expedition, w/ @archaeal.bsky.social fr @texasscience.bsky.social! In the coming months and years, this research will likely open the door to new medical breakthroughs and unlock answers to questions about the origins of complex life.

youtu.be/mgmEh_qag5E?...
Collaboration for Understanding | Searching for the Asgards
YouTube video by Schmidt Ocean
youtu.be
December 2, 2025 at 11:38 PM
We wish you a happy Antarctica Day!

The #AntarcticClimateConnections team was moved by the experience of crossing the divide — not just between countries & continents, but between the known & the unknown in Antarctica. Watch our short film, Crossing the Divide: youtu.be/C4e3GZkGwxk?...
Crossing the Divide | Climate Connections at the Ice-Sea Interface
YouTube video by Schmidt Ocean
youtu.be
December 1, 2025 at 8:09 PM
Spectacular strawberry squid! Histioteuthis squid w/massively asymmetrical eyes: 1 larger for viewing the silhouettes of predators & prey above, & 1 smaller eye for capturing glimmers of bioluminescent snacks below. #AsgardArchea - 730m - ROV SuBastian / Schmidt Ocean Institute
November 29, 2025 at 1:56 AM
Our latest expedition update video is live on YouTube. Learn how the #AsgardArchaea science team is looking for our microbial ancestors to understand the biological events that led to the broad diversity of complex cellular life.

youtu.be/Jy_boPdY0zo?...
The Origins of Complex Life | Searching for the Asgards
YouTube video by Schmidt Ocean
youtu.be
November 26, 2025 at 9:00 PM
This fluttery finned fish, possibly from the family Oreosomatidae, was spotted during #AsgardArchaea at around 1000 m. Read more about this expedition led by @archaeal.bsky.social from @texasscience.bsky.social here: https://schmidtocean.org/cruise/searching-for-the-asgard/
November 22, 2025 at 12:34 AM
#AsgardArchaea team, led by @archaeal.bsky.social fr @texasscience.bsky.social — sequencing the DNA collected fr mouth of Rio de la Plata to the continental shelf of Uruguay to detect Asgards, a group of single-celled organisms & our closest microbial relatives on the tree of life. bit.ly/3MdniTH
November 21, 2025 at 12:07 AM
Reposted by Schmidt Ocean Institute
Stormy waters have cleared. Winds and light. Currents moderate. Live streaming from 850m. Collecting push cores.
November 20, 2025 at 1:00 PM
Following a 2021 expedition on R/V Falkor, scientists share findings connected to the toxic legacy of once-legal ocean dumping off the coast of Southern California. Register & join us: https://schmidtocean-org.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_bGCuKTmDSrGydYHaoYFbuw#/registration
November 17, 2025 at 11:32 PM
Reposted by Schmidt Ocean Institute
November 17, 2025 at 9:57 AM
Reposted by Schmidt Ocean Institute
November 16, 2025 at 6:08 PM
Skating into the weekend . . . like a cartilaginous fish! Related to sharks w/wings for hovering & flying over the seafloor & a long, whiplike tail for steering. We see them during ROV dives, burrowed into the sediment, utterly still until they can ambush their next meal.

235m #Taleof2Canyons
November 14, 2025 at 10:28 PM
This is a sea cucumber eating. This #Taleof2Canyons mealtime footage, collected by ROV pilots at a depth of 142m, offers a perfect illustration of suspension feeding (sped up 5x). The sea cucumber stretches feathery tentacles up into the current to capture their meal.
November 13, 2025 at 9:59 PM