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 ID Activity Tectonic Setting Region Latitude Longitude Maximum or Single Reported Depth Year and How Discoveredsort descending
West Valley active, inferred mid-ocean ridge JdF Ridge 48.4833 -129.0417 3000 1987 and 1988 deposits only (towed camera did not confirm activity)
North Cleft, high temperature active, confirmed mid-ocean ridge JdF Ridge 44.9800 -130.2000 2300 1987 camera/CTD tows discovered low-temperature vents; 1988 submersible Alvin sampled low-temperature vents; 1990 submersible Alvin discovered black smoker
MAR, 24 30'N inactive mid-ocean ridge N MAR 24.5000 -46.1533 3900 1987 deposits only
Fukujin volcano active, inferred arc volcano Mariana Arc 21.9300 143.4700 1100 1987 deposits only
Hawaiian Ridge inactive intra-plate volcano Central Pacific 15.0000 -157.5000 5000 1987 or earlier
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, 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
Taketomi Thermal Area active, confirmed arc volcano Ryukyu Arc 24.3483 124.1017 23 1987 or earlier, likely by SCUBA
Milos active, confirmed arc volcano Hellenic Arc, Aegean Sea 36.6667 24.5167 200 1987 or earlier, likely by SCUBA; 1992 Minirover ROV deeper sites
Montserrat-Marie Galante fault active, inferred arc volcano Lesser Antilles Arc 16.4600 -61.9820 1000 1987 plume and deposits
CIR, Segment 3, Hydrothermal Plume Site active, inferred mid-ocean ridge CIR -24.0000 69.6667 2840 1987 plume only; 2005/2006 plume only
Mohns Ridge, 72 N active, inferred mid-ocean ridge Mohns Ridge 72.0390 -0.2520 2500 1987 plume only; 2013 plume only
Kasuga 2 Seamount active, confirmed arc volcano Mariana Arc 21.6000 143.6167 500 1987 submersible Alvin
Kasuga 3 Seamount active, confirmed arc volcano Mariana Arc 21.3833 143.6000 1140 1987 submersible Alvin
Mariana Mounds active, confirmed back-arc spreading center Mariana Trough 18.0333 144.2833 3600 1987 submersible Alvin
Mariana Trough, Central Trough active, confirmed back-arc spreading center Mariana Trough 18.0467 144.7533 3676 1987 submersible Alvin
Sumisu Rift active, inferred back-arc spreading center Izu-Bonin back-arc 31.1000 139.8917 1600 1987 submersible Alvin inactive chimneys only
Alice Springs Field active, confirmed back-arc spreading center Mariana Trough 18.2103 144.7073 3640 1987 submersible Alvin; 1982 plume only
EPR, 21 40'S active, inferred mid-ocean ridge S EPR -21.6340 -114.3010 2730 1987-1988 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]
North Cleft, low temperature active, confirmed mid-ocean ridge JdF Ridge 44.8833 -130.2667 2250 1987-1989 camera/CTD tows
Minami-Ensei Knoll active, confirmed back-arc spreading center Okinawa Trough 28.3917 127.6417 740 1988 deep tow TV surveys followed by submersible Shinkai 2000; 1986 dredged Calyptogena shells
Myojinsho Caldera active, inferred arc volcano Izu-Bonin Arc 31.8833 139.9500 1110 1988 deposits only; 2005 plume only
EPR, Seamount 5 active, inferred mid-ocean ridge N EPR 13.0000 -103.5000 1100 1988 or earlier camera and/or submersible (need to check reference)
MAR, 14 54'N active, inferred mid-ocean ridge N MAR 14.9200 -44.9000 3500 1988 or earlier seafloor photographs did not confirm hydrothermal activity
Galapagos Rift, 85 50'W inactive mid-ocean ridge Galapagos Rift 0.7500 -85.8333 2600 1988 or earlier submersible observations
MAR, south of 15 20'N fracture zone active, inferred mid-ocean ridge N MAR 15.0833 -45.0000 3000 1988 plume only; 1992 submersible Nautile did not observe active vents
CIR, 19 29'S active, inferred mid-ocean ridge CIR -19.4830 65.7330 2700 1988 plume only; 2000 submersible Nautile did not confirm activity
High-Rise Field active, confirmed mid-ocean ridge JdF Ridge 47.9666 -129.0894 2200 1988 submersible Alvin
EPR, 11 07'N active, inferred mid-ocean ridge N EPR 11.1330 -103.7800 2580 1988 submersible Alvin dive #1989 (need reference to confirm activity); 1991 plume only

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