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It may be an overused statistic, but it’s true: We know less about what lives and lurks in our oceans than we do about space. This year also proved to be no exception to the rule. Over the past year, researchers have discovered long-lost shipwrecks, strange animals and even a phenomenon known as “dark oxygen.”
‘Ghost Ship of the Pacific’ found with the help of underwater drones
It took just a few hours for a team of 20-foot autonomous underwater drones to move the USS Steward after spending 78 years at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. The ‘four-pipe’ destroyer ship was the only ship captured by Japanese forces during World War II and was nicknamed the ‘Ghost Ship’ after numerous Allied troops spotted it deep behind enemy lines. Although it was eventually returned to the US Navy and scuttled, its exact location remained a mystery for years. However, now we know that the extremely well-preserved remains lie off the coast of California in the Cordell Bank National Marine Reserve.
Shipwreck hunters find a World War II merchant ship sunk in Lake Superior
Although also dating from the WWII era, the Arlington was not involved in the battle when it sank. The 244-foot bulk carrier was instead a merchant ship sailing Lake Superior en route to Owen Sound, Ontario. However, bad weather caused the ship to take on water in the early hours of 1 May. While Captain Frederick “Tatey Bug” Burke insisted that his crew stay the course, the sailors had other plans and soon left Burke on his – and his – the ship’s ultimate fate. Like the USS Stewardthe Arlington was located using remote-controlled submarines and sonar scans.
New, colorful starfish species found off the coast of Japan
There are about 2,000 cataloged species of starfish in the world, but that list grew by at least one new variety in 2024. Discovered by researchers off the coast of Japan’s Izu Peninsula, Paragonaster hoeimaruaeis only the second starfish known to belong to the family Pseudarchasteridae. The strikingly orange sea creatures are specially adapted to living in muddy, sandy water – an evolutionary trait that researchers hope to learn more about in the coming years.
Grumpy fish species found in the Red Sea
Viktor Nunes Peinemann
While it is just as orange as Paragonaster hoeimaruae, Sueviota aethon probably has a much more striking physical feature: the little fish has a downward-curved mouth that makes it look permanently disgruntled. His face seems so irritated that it has even earned him the common name of the grumpy dwarf goby. The approximately 2.5 cm long fish lives among the coral reefs of the Farasan Banks of the Red Sea, near Saudi Arabia. But even at that size, discoverers describe the grumpy dwarf goby as a “fearsome predator,” given its relatively large canines used to catch and devour small invertebrates.
World War II submarine discovered 81 years after disappearance during secret mission
It took at least 14 attempts over nearly 25 years, but researchers finally found the wreckage of the HMS Trooper in 2024. The World War II Allied submarine and its 64 crew were deployed on a secret mission near Greece in early October 1943, but never arrived in Beirut as originally planned. Researchers used both sonar and an ROV called “Super Achille” to identify Trooperwhere he is, and confirms the fatal collision with a German mine. Trooper is located in three separate parts, estimated to be 250 meters deep, at the bottom of the Ikarian Sea, near the Greek island of Donoussa.
The world’s largest coral formation is longer than that of a blue whale
Photo by Manu San Félix, National Geographic Pristine Seas
The largest animal in the world may be the blue whale, but researchers determined in 2024 that the largest intertwined community of animals is undoubtedly the recently discovered Pavona clavus coral colony. The self-contained coral system, which measures 35 meters wide, 30 meters long, 5.5 meters high and 180 meters in circumference, has formed over the past 300 years in the southwestern Pacific Ocean and can even be seen from space .
New species of ghost sharks found in New Zealand
National Institute for Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA)
Ghost sharks, also called “ghost fish,” are not technically sharks, but a group of fish closely related to ocean predators. One of the newest additions to the family this year was Harriotta aviadescribed as having an “elongated, narrow, and depressed snout; long, slender trunk; big eyes; and very long, broad pectoral fins” and “beautiful chocolate brown color.” But don’t expect to encounter one in the open waters.Harriotta avia lives near New Zealand on the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, about 2,000 meters below surface water.
‘Dark oxygen’ on the ocean floor could rewrite the origins of life
One of the wildest underwater discoveries of 2024 involved not a new species of life, but chemical processes that could rewrite our understanding of the origins of life itself. Earlier this year, researchers published findings regarding polymetallic nodules: natural mineral deposits on the pitch-black ocean floor. However, despite the lack of sunlight, there is evidence that these formations appear to function as ‘geobatteries’ capable of generating trace amounts of oxygen that support life in the deep sea. If that’s true, then the very first living organisms on the planet may have emerged in a place where no one ever thought life could even exist.
New jellyfish discovered near Japan could contain loads of venom
Like many other similar species, the newly found St. George’s cross medusa lives about 700 meters deep in the Pacific Ocean, hunting luminous prey with its many tentacles. But unlike his relatives, Santjordia paginasi contains an “arsenal of venom” that differs from other known jellyfish. Unfortunately, it may be a while before researchers start gathering more information about the creature. It is difficult to collect more specimens as the jellyfish lives in a deep-sea volcanic caldera about 465 kilometers south of Tokyo.
Researchers discover a neurological mechanism that controls anglerfish lures
Anglerfish aren’t a new find for researchers, but biologists this year confirmed a surprising evolutionary trait in the strange-looking animals. Using tracer analysis, a team discovered the exact motor neurons that control the lure of one of the subspecies’ front dorsal fins. It appears that the location of these motoneurons has shifted relative to their relatives during their evolution, pointing to evolutionary implications that extend all the way to land-walking vertebrates.
More than 100 possible new ocean species found near Chile
The 1,800-mile-long Salas y Gómez ridge near Chile is home to some wild creatures that look like they just arrived from an alien planet. Earlier this year, researchers used a remotely operated submersible to survey the region and document more than 100 candidates for never-before-seen species. These include crustaceans, molluscs, fish and even marine mammals. Biologists have also glimpsed extremely rare animals, such as the whiplash squid.
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