What are hydrothermal vents?

Underwater hot springs on the ocean floor are called hydrothermal vents.

Imagine you're wearing a diving suit and swimming deep in the ocean. Suddenly, you see bright colors glowing from the dark, it’s like someone turned on a light show underwater! These lights come from hydrothermal vents, which are cracks in the Earth's surface under the sea. Hot water rushes out of these cracks, bringing with it minerals that make colorful deposits around them.

Deep beneath the ocean, there’s a lot of heat from inside the Earth. This hot water travels through rocks and comes out through vents, like taps on the ocean floor. The water is so hot that when it meets the cold ocean, it creates clouds of tiny particles. These clouds look like smoke rising from a chimney.

Some creatures live near these vents, even though there's no sunlight. They use chemicals from the vent water to make food, just like plants use sunlight! These vent communities are full of strange and wonderful life that you can’t find anywhere else in the ocean.