Li Lianfu, Zhang Hongyun, Xi Shichuan, Liu Chenglong, Li Congying, Zheng Jian, Huang Jing, Hao Yufei, Zhang Xin, Sun Weidong
Laoshan Laboratory, Qingdao 266237, China.
Center of Deep Sea Research & Key Laboratory of Marine Geology and Environment Key Laboratory of Ocean Observation and Forecasting, Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China.
Sci Adv. 2025 Aug 8;11(32):eadx3202. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.adx3202.
The Kunlun hydrothermal system near the Mussau Trench in the western Pacific consists of 20 large round/oval craters of hundreds of meters in diameter. The total area is 11.1 square kilometers, i.e., over a hundred times larger than the Lost City. Four of the larger craters were prospected using the human occupied vehicle Fendouzhe and have steep walls similar to those of kimberlite pipes, with depths of up to 130 meters. Ecosystems have been observed in smaller pits on the bottom of these pipes. Hydrogen concentrations of ~5.9 to 6.8 millimoles per kilogram in hydrothermal fluids have been obtained using in situ Raman spectra. The estimated total hydrogen flux of Kunlun is 4.8 × 10 moles per year, which is >5% of the estimated global submarine abiotic hydrogen flux. Hydrogen-rich, alkaline fluids generated by serpentinization have formed large-scale carbonate rocks within the pipes below the carbonate compensation depth, and both dolomite and calcite have been identified.
西太平洋穆绍海沟附近的昆仑热液系统由20个直径达数百米的大型圆形/椭圆形火山口组成。总面积为11.1平方公里，即比失落之城大一百多倍。其中四个较大的火山口由载人潜水器“奋斗者”号进行了勘探，其陡峭的井壁类似于金伯利岩管道，深度可达130米。在这些管道底部的较小坑洞中观察到了生态系统。利用原位拉曼光谱获得了热液流体中约5.9至6.8毫摩尔/千克的氢气浓度。昆仑的估计总氢通量为每年4.8×10摩尔，大于全球海底非生物氢通量估计值的5%。蛇纹石化作用产生的富氢碱性流体在碳酸盐补偿深度以下的管道内形成了大规模的碳酸盐岩，且已鉴定出白云石和方解石。
