This early January, a team of marine scientists discovered a new species of life in a most unlikely place: on the ocean floor, hidden from sunlight and steeped in pressures of thousands of pounds per square inch, swarming around vents that spurt scorching water.

Boarding the vessel, Atlantis, the team – led by marine biologist Dr. Jon Copley and marine geochemist Dr. Doug Connelly – descended five kilometers to the Cayman Trough, located south of the Cayman Islands in the Caribbean. At the Cayman Trough, like at other trenches, two tectonic plates are slowly shifting apart 0.6 inches or 15 mm per year, producing fresh ocean floor. Hydrothermal vents often sprout at trenches due to the volcanic activity occurring below.

Found commonly in ridges, they are essentially seafloor chimneys – as tall as ten meters – that spew mineral-filled water, whose temperatures range from 300 to 400° C (600-750° F). Their heat comes from magma chambers under the ocean floor. Upon reaching their destination, the marine scientists were surprised to see two hydrothermal vents that were six meters tall. The team did not expect to find vents because it was thought that they did not exist in the area.

This type of vent, known as a “black smoker vent,” gushes 450° C (~850° F) water, filled not only with minerals, but with metallic particles, making the water appear smoky. The explorers named the vents the Beebe Vent Field, after William Beebe, an American scientist who was the first deep-sea explorer. The team was surprised even further when they spotted a new species of shrimp clustering (2,000 per square meter) around the vents and feeding on the minerals.

In lieu of eyes, the ghostly white shrimp have a light-sensing organ on their backs to help them navigate through the dim glow emanating from the vents. Furthermore, white anemones were found laying on the sea floor, where they fed off of the copper-rich water that seeped through. In a previous expedition, the team also found vents around Mount Dent (3 km high), an underwater mountain located at the Cayman Trough.

“Finding black smoker vents on Mount Dent was a complete surprise,” Dr. Connelly says in the National Oceanography Center news release. Dr. Connelly works at the National Oceanography Center. “Hot and acidic vents have never been seen in an area like this before, and usually we don’t even look for vents in places like this.”

With their finding vents at Mount Dent and now at the Cayman Trough, the marine scientists surmise that there is more volcanic activity in the ocean than previously thought. Recently, another team of scientists discovered new species of crab and octopus – called the yeti crab and the pale octopus, respectively – hanging around vents in Antarctica.

With the combination of the discovery of life at the bottom of the Antarctic and at the Cayman Trough, marine scientists all over the world are expanding their perception of what sorts of conditions life can thrive in, especially in the deepest parts of the oceans. “Studying the creatures at these vents and comparing them with species at other vents around the world will help us to understand how animals disperse and evolve in the deep ocean,” states Dr. Copley of the University of Southampton, United Kingdom.

“One of the big mysteries of deep-sea vents is how animals are able to disperse from vent field to vent field, crossing the apparently large distances between them,” he adds. “But maybe there are more ‘stepping stones’ like these out there than we realized.”

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As Labor Day Weekend marked the unofficial end of summer, millions of participant and spectators celebrated in Brooklyn during the annual West Indian American Parade & Carnival. The Labor Day Carnival Parade is an outdoor festival that highlights the cultures of nations across the West Indies.

The 2011 West Indian American Parade & Carnival took place on September 5 and showcased a day packed with music, dance, and international cuisine The show stopping performances during this year’s 43^rd annual parade was one of the biggest ever seen in Brooklyn. The parade route ran along busy Eastern Parkway.

With a combination of many Caribbean cultures coming together for the parade, this yearly festivity is one of the largest cultural events in all of New York City. The celebrations began in Brooklyn a few days prior to the main parade that took place on Labor Day. Countries including Jamaica, Trinidad and Barbados were represented, along with a variety of other Caribbean nations.

The original West Indian American Parade & Carnival started in Harlem in the 1940’s, but was then moved to its current home in Brooklyn in the 1960’s. Remaining on the same route, Eastern Parkway annually lights up with the sights and sounds of the Caribbean.

The parade gets its foundation from the traditions of carnivals throughout the Caribbean, where bright costumes and days of exciting music fill up the streets in preparation for Lent. Although this custom has been redirected towards the time around Labor Day, the beauty of these cultures are still a yearly tradition in Brooklyn.

The parade’s signature theme is to bring out the unique cultural traditions of each country through ornately colorful floats that make their way down Eastern Parkway. Thousands of participants dressed up in vibrant costumes and danced atop the decorated floats. The colors of the rainbow were displayed on Caribbean influenced designs, and often included large headpieces flanked with feathers.

Months of preparation go into the designs of the f loats and costumes to make the West Indian American Parade & Carnival one of the most detailed and radiant festival throughout New York City. Along with the sights of the parade were the distinct sounds of the festival. Caribbean music was played throughout the duration of the parade.

Everything from Jamaican reggae to Trinidadian calypso could be heard along Eastern Parkway. One of the highlights of the parade was the abundance of steel drums. Many groups skillfully playing the steel drums performed and competed for the title of the best steel drum band of the year.

The energetic music from guitars, drums, congas, and other instruments got the massive crowds dancing their way through the parade. The tastes of Caribbean cuisine were also a main event during the parade. As is true for many cultures around the world, food is one of the main examples of how uniquely different these countries can be.

Local cooks and chefs came together to serve plates of delicious food from their home countries. Vendors lined the street selling dishes of oxtail, jerk chicken, coconut bread and fried plantains, among many other choices. The array of cultural cuisine was astounding and was a great display of the local food in the Caribbean.

Over three million people enjoyed this year’s West Indian American Parade & Carnival. A large population of New York City inhabitants comes from Caribbean nations. The parade was bursting at the seams with excitement and pride in their distinct cultures.

The annual parade brought participants and onlookers dressed in costumes and with painted faces to Eastern Parkway, and enjoyed a weekend long celebration of the Caribbean.

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