Dark Oxygen Research Initiative

Following the discovery of dark oxygen production in the deep sea in association with polymetallic nodules, this project brings together international experts to validate this finding and investigate the scale and mechanisms of this newly discovered process.

In 2026 the team will investigate if they can measure dark oxygen production in another area of the deep Pacific Ocean using ultra deep-sea landers equipped with autonomous instruments, measuring parameters such as oxygen production, turbidity, hydrogen production, conductivity, and pressure. The team will study the scale of oxygen production and if and how electrochemical and microbial processes regulate the process, and the effects of sediment burial on dark oxygen production.

This study is essential for the international community to estimate the potential effects of deep-sea mining on deep-sea ecosystem processes.

DORI is led by Professor Andrew Sweetman from SAMS. Major collaborators are Professor Franz M Geiger from Northwestern University and Professor Jeffrey Marlow from Boston University.