Hear the first audio recordings from the sea’s deepest point

BBC Earth

Image:  rizuan.j

When film director James Cameron visited the deepest known point on Earth in 2012, he did not see a great deal. But if he had taken some underwater microphones with him he might have heard a lot.

For the first time, scientists have obtained audio recordings from 7 miles (11km) below sea level in Challenger Deep, the deepest part of the Mariana Trench, south-west of Guam. They reveal a soundscape rich with the rumble of earthquakes, the deep moans of whales – and the mechanical whirr of ships.

The recordings were made by researchers from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Oregon State University and the US Coast Guard as part of an effort to measure the amount of sound pollution in the Pacific Ocean. Read more on the BBC Earth website…