Vent Fields

Welcome to the InterRidge Global Database of Active Submarine Hydrothermal Vent Fields (the “InterRidge Vents Database”).
To sort the list of Vent Fields, click on a column header.
To view details for a specific Vent Field, click on the Name ID.
To view the subset of Vent Fields that contain a specific category, click on the category (for example, "active, confirmed" in the "Activity" column).

Vent Field Name IDsort ascending Activity Tectonic Setting Region Latitude Longitude Maximum or Single Reported Depth Year and How Discovered
EPR, 28.7 S, Segment W4 active, inferred mid-ocean ridge S EPR -28.7000 -112.9880 2350 1998 plume only
EPR, 28.4 S, Segment W4 active, inferred mid-ocean ridge S EPR -28.4170 -112.9640 2350 1998 plume only
EPR, 28.3 S, Segment W3 active, inferred mid-ocean ridge S EPR -28.3000 -112.9830 2220 1998 plume only
EPR, 28 S, Segment W3 active, inferred mid-ocean ridge S EPR -28.0170 -112.9040 2130 1998 plume only
EPR, 27.9 S, Segment W3 active, inferred mid-ocean ridge S EPR -27.8670 -112.9120 2180 1998 plume only
EPR, 27.7 S, Segment W3 active, inferred mid-ocean ridge S EPR -27.7000 -112.9170 2105 1998 plume only
EPR, 26.5 S active, confirmed mid-ocean ridge S EPR -26.4833 -112.6250 2064 1993 submersible Nautile (or earlier)
EPR, 26 10'S active, confirmed mid-ocean ridge S EPR -26.2050 -112.6133 2600 1987 or earlier [need to check Marchig & Gundlach (1987)]; 2005 submersible Alvin did not observe active vents
EPR, 23 50'S active, confirmed mid-ocean ridge S EPR -23.8233 -115.4558 2650 2005 submersible Alvin; 1990 or earlier towed TV camera did not confirm activity
EPR, 23 30'S active, confirmed mid-ocean ridge S EPR -23.5333 -115.5667 2600 1987 or earlier [need to check Marchig & Gundlach (1987)]; 2005 submersible Alvin
EPR, 22 30'S active, inferred mid-ocean ridge S EPR -22.5000 -114.3670 2600 1985/86 or 1989 TV grab (need to check references to confirm activity)
EPR, 21 N active, confirmed mid-ocean ridge N EPR 20.8333 -109.0833 2600 1979 submersible Alvin; 1978 submersible Cyana discovered mineral deposits only
EPR, 21 54'S active, inferred mid-ocean ridge S EPR -21.9000 -114.5000 2800 1987-1988 deposits only [need to check Fouquet et al. (1993) for confirmation]
EPR, 21 40'S active, inferred mid-ocean ridge S EPR -21.6340 -114.3010 2730 1987-1988 deposits only
EPR, 21 25'S active, confirmed mid-ocean ridge S EPR -21.4333 -114.2917 2850 1984 submersible Cyana; 1983 deposits only
EPR, 21 20'S active, inferred mid-ocean ridge S EPR -21.3670 -114.2570 2900 1981 plume only; 1987-1988 deposits only
EPR, 20 S active, inferred mid-ocean ridge S EPR -20.0333 -113.6843 3000 1999 submersible Alvin did not confirm activity
EPR, 20 06'S active, confirmed mid-ocean ridge S EPR -20.1000 -113.7080 3000 1981 Angus camera tow; 1984 submersible Cyana
EPR, 2 S, off-axis active, inferred mid-ocean ridge S EPR -2.0840 -102.8270 3000 2008 plume only
EPR, 2 S active, confirmed mid-ocean ridge S EPR -2.2200 -102.6550 2900 2008 towed video and AUV ABE
EPR, 18 32'S active, confirmed mid-ocean ridge S EPR -18.5550 -113.4160 2647 1993 submersible Nautile
EPR, 18 26'S active, confirmed mid-ocean ridge S EPR -18.4333 -113.3833 2650 1993 submersible Nautile; 1983 seafloor photos, temperature anomalies, and deposits did not confirm activity; 1984 submersible Cyana observed only inactive sites; 1985/86 or 1989 TV grab (need to check references to confirm activity)
EPR, 18 15'S active, confirmed mid-ocean ridge S EPR -18.2500 -113.3500 2680 1993 submersible Nautile
EPR, 18 10'S active, confirmed mid-ocean ridge S EPR -18.1700 -113.3440 2700 1993 submersible Nautile; 1983 temperature and light attenuation anomalies
EPR, 17 S active, inferred mid-ocean ridge S EPR -17.0000 -113.1170 2680 1993 plume only
EPR, 17 56'S active, inferred mid-ocean ridge S EPR -17.9400 -113.3170 2620 1993 plume only
EPR, 17 53'S active, inferred mid-ocean ridge S EPR -17.8800 -113.3000 2610 1993 plume only
EPR, 17 47'S active, inferred mid-ocean ridge S EPR -17.7900 -113.3000 2600 1993 plume only
EPR, 17 44'S active, confirmed mid-ocean ridge S EPR -17.7330 -113.2660 2622 1998 submersible Alvin; 1993 plume only; not explored by Nautile in 1993 or Shinkai 6500 in 1994
EPR, 17 42'S active, inferred mid-ocean ridge S EPR -17.7000 -113.2500 2600 1993 plume only

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