Field Work

During Summer 2024, the Orphan Lab participated in a research cruise off Alaska to explore deep (~5000 m) methane seeps in the Aleutian Trench. Work is ongoing to compare the microbiology and ecology of these sites with the shallower (~800-1000 m) deep sites off California, described below.

Cold methane seep sites were discovered off the coast of California in the Monterey Canyon. They were identified by the presence of patches of clams, which are macrofauna typically associated with methane seep sites. One of the key processes in these seep sites is anaerobic oxidation of methane (AOM). AOM is performed by anaerobic methanotrophic archaea (ANME) in syntrophic consortia with sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB).

The Auka and JaichMaa ja'ag vent fields are the deepest known hydrothermal vents in the Pacific Ocean and are located in Pescadero Basin at the southern tip of the Gulf of California, Mexico. Sediment hosted carbonate chimneys and platforms at the location of hydrothermal fluid discharge are their prominent features. The Orphan lab studies both the sediment and rock hosted microbial communities of Pescadero Basin vents.

High in the Canadian Arctic, ultracold methane-rich brine springs exist on the remote Axel Heiberg Island. The Lost Hammer springs site represents one of the coldest environments known to support anaerobic methane-oxidizing archaea. In the Orphan Lab, we are studying this exobiology-relevant environment in collaboration with Dr. Halley Sapers and Canadian colleagues to better understand the physiology and unique adaptations of these polyextremophilic anaerobic methanotrophs (ANME) at temperatures below freezing.