Dark oxygen sounds like the source of a supervillain’s power in a Marvel movie, but it’s a real thing causing real debates.
Driving the news: There was one topic on everyone’s lips at the recent UN-backed conference on deep-sea mining: a groundbreaking new research paper positing the existence of oxygen produced in the deepest depths of the ocean. Researchers have dubbed it “dark oxygen.”
- Experts previously thought oxygen was only naturally produced via photosynthesis which, if you recall science class, needs sunlight. Sunlight doesn’t reach the sea-floor.
How is it made, then? Researchers aren’t 100% sure, but their working hypothesis is that polymetallic nodules — sea-floor rocks rich in minerals like nickel and copper — release electric charges that split seawater, thus releasing oxygen.
Why it matters: Besides maybe giving new clues for how life on Earth began (nbd), dark oxygen has thrown a wrench into deep-sea mining. These oxygen-generating nodules are the same ones miners want to harvest for critical minerals needed for the green transition.
- Dark oxygen’s potential ecological importance gives more ammo to deep-sea mining critics who have warned of its environmental risks.
- Leading deep-sea mining company The Metals Company has dismissed the paper as highly questionable, despite partially funding the research team who wrote it.
Zoom out: Norway became the first country to approve deep-sea mining last year, but the industry is at a standstill with many nations, including Canada, calling for a moratorium.—QH
