Baker. 2017

Ore Geology Reviews 86 (2017) 55–69
Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
Ore Geology Reviews

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/oregeo
Review
Exploring the ocean for hydrothermal venting: New techniques, new

discoveries, new insights
Edward T. Baker
Joint Institution for the Study of the Atmosphere and Ocean, University of Washington, and NOAA/PMEL, Seattle, WA 98115, USA
a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t
Article history: Enumerating active hydrothermal fields on the seafloor has been a challenge since their discovery almost
Received 12 July 2016 40 years ago. High-temperature hydrothermal fields are readily discoverable, primarily by detecting
Received in revised form 2 February 2017 mineral-laden plumes, but low-temperature, particle-poor vent fields resist discovery. Decades of explo-
Accepted 6 February 2017
ration for vent fields have covered, though often cursorily, about one-third of the global lengths of both
Available online 9 February 2017
oceanic spreading ridges (OSRs) and volcanic arcs, identifying some 630 active vent fields. About 80% of
these fields are on OSRs, and the spatial frequency of those fields is currently estimated as 0.5–
Keywords:
5/100 km, generally increasing with spreading rate. Over the last decade, however, a few detailed surveys
Hydrothermal venting
Diffuse flow
have added sensors capable of detecting ephemeral chemical tracers (oxidation-reduction potential) in
Ocean ridges addition to standard sensors that detect quasi-conservative optical tracers (such as light backscattering).
Faunal distribution This approach has revealed a new view of the distribution of venting fields along fast-spreading
Geochemical budgets (>55 mm/yr) OSRs. Studies of four such ridge sections totaling 1470 km length suggest that the present
Crustal circulation inventory of vent fields may underestimate the true global population of vent fields on fast-spreading
OSRs by a factor of 3–6. This increase implies that ridge axes are unexpectedly ‘‘leaky” reservoirs, from
which hydrothermal fluids escape at far more sites than presently assumed; that the supply of dissolved
hydrothermal iron, which may be fertilizing the primary production of the Southern Ocean, is higher than
now calculated; and that present estimates of recoverable sulfide tonnage from ridge axes may be too
low. Along slow-spreading ridges, which account for 60% of the global OSR length and 86% of known sul-
fide tonnage, expansive axial valleys present special exploration challenges that will not be easily
overcome.
Ó 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Contents
1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
2. Results from past exploration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
2.1. Ocean spreading ridges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
2.2. Volcanic arcs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
2.3. Global depth and jurisdictional patterns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
3. The future of exploration. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
3.1. Standard exploration techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
3.2. ‘‘Best practices” exploration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
3.3. Examples of ‘‘best practices” surveys. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
3.3.1. East Pacific Rise, 9°–10°N. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
3.3.2. Eastern Galápagos Spreading Center, 85.7°–91°W . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
3.3.3. Eastern Lau Spreading Center, 19°–23°S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
3.3.4. Brothers Volcano, Kermadec arc, 35°S. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
3.4. A new view of vent field spatial frequency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
E-mail address: [email protected]
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.oregeorev.2017.02.006
0169-1368/Ó 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
56 E.T. Baker / Ore Geology Reviews 86 (2017) 55–69
4. Some consequences of an expanded vent field population . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

4.1. Hydrothermal circulation in the shallow crust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
4.2. Global geochemical budgets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
4.3. Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
5. Conclusions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
1. Introduction (Baker et al., 2008a) and back-arc spreading ridges (BASCs)

(Martinez et al., 2006; German et al., 2006) of the western Pacific.
Evidence that magmatic heat can be readily transferred to the Second, opportunities to detect hydrothermal plumes were
deep ocean goes back to the 1960s. Samples of hot brine were col- expanded by the introduction of a simple autonomous optical
lected at the bottom of the Red Sea (Miller et al., 1966), a continen- and (later) chemical sensor that could be added to any wire used
tal rift, and Knauss (1962) suggested that abnormally warm water in shipboard operations (e.g., rock dredges, rock cores, deep-
between 3000 and 3500 m over the East Pacific Rise (EPR) near towed sonar systems) (e.g., Edmonds et al., 2003). The widespread
20°S was related to a recently mapped zone of high seafloor heat availability of Miniature Autonomous Plume Recorders (MAPRs)
flow in the same area. In the 1970s, discoveries of enhanced con- developed by the NOAA Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory
centrations of hydrothermal tracers such as 3He above the EPR (PMEL) has, since 1996, led to the discovery of almost 200 vent
(Craig et al., 1975) and dissolved Mn above the Galápagos Spread- fields (Hammond et al., 2015). And, more recently, commercial
ing Center (GSC) (Klinkhammer et al., 1977) dramatically verified (e.g., http://www.nautilusminerals.com) and state-sponsored
these observations. The culmination of these observations, and (Kim et al., 2009; Tao et al., 2012) interest in locating minable sea-
the dawn of the hydrothermal age, was the discovery of hydrother- floor massive sulfides (SMS) has driven exploration for vent fields
mal fluids discharging as low-temperature diffuse flow on the GSC along western Pacific arcs and BASCs, and on ultraslow-spreading
in 1977 (Corliss et al., 1979) and as high-temperature black smok- ridges in the Indian Ocean.
ers on the EPR at 21°N in 1979 (Spiess et al., 1980). In this paper I first review the history of vent field exploration,
Exploration for vent fields began initially by means of seafloor describing the known distribution of active vent fields in terms of
imaging using submersibles and towed cameras (e.g., Ballard tectonic settings, water depth, and jurisdictional boundaries. I then
et al., 1984; McConachy et al., 1986). Concurrently, water column explain how the application of ‘‘best practices” in exploration and
sampling revealed that hydrothermal venting created plumes the use of new sensor technology reveal that our current inventory
above vent fields as hot, buoyant fluids rose, entrained ambient of the global vent field population may be greatly underestimated.
seawater, and dispersed laterally along density isolines after reach- Finally, I discuss how these new results can affect our understand-
ing buoyancy equilibrium (Lupton et al., 1980). Oceanographers ing of several important processes operating at the Earth-ocean
soon found that plumes could be detected not only by collecting boundary.
and analyzing water samples, but also by real-time measurements
of temperature and optical (light transmission or backscattering) 2. Results from past exploration
signatures. By slowly towing such sensors behind a ship along a
ridge crest, these tracers could map a two-dimensional transect The InterRidge Database (http://vents-data.interridge.org) is the
of plumes along tens to hundreds of kilometers (Baker et al., authoritative repository of active vent field locations, but is subject
1985). This technique swiftly located seafloor vent fields to within to biases that inherently reduce its comprehensiveness. The data-
several kilometers, making follow-up searches by submersibles base defines a vent field as ‘‘a cluster or assemblage of venting sites
and remotely operated vehicles (ROV) far more efficient. in relatively close proximity (i.e., on the order of 0.1–1 km),” and
In the first decade or so of hydrothermal studies, geologists the same definition is used here. Off-axis vent fields are excluded.
debated whether the primary control on the distribution of vent It relies on information from published papers, and so favors
fields was heat supply (primarily from cooling magma) or tectonic named fields listed in these papers rather than a rigorous analysis
setting (regulating the access of seawater to crustal heat). Extrap- of the underlying data. Because the most common plume detection
olating from hydrothermal plumes mapped along the Juan de Fuca tools are optical (light transmission or scattering) sensors, explo-
Ridge in the northeast Pacific, Baker and Hammond (1992) hypoth- ration has been strongly biased toward the discovery of high-
esized that the spatial frequency of such plumes, and thus of vent temperature, black smoker venting (Fig. 1a-c). Isolated, low-
fields themselves, increased linearly with spreading rate (a proxy temperature fields are likely overlooked (Larson et al., 2015)
for the magma budget) for all ridges. Accumulating plume data (Fig. 1d–f). And the preponderance of hydrothermal survey efforts
from fast-spreading (>55 mm/yr) ridges strengthened this hypoth- that utilize discrete vertical profiles, rather than spatially continu-
esis (Baker et al., 1996). However, surveys along the Mid-Atlantic ous observations, inevitably results in undercounting fields.
Ridge (MAR) suggested that the relationship was more compli- As of 2016, active submarine vent fields in the InterRidge Data-
cated along slow-spreading ridges. German and Parson (1996), base numbered more than 630 and have been found along the
for example, found that plume frequency was elevated in settings boundaries of 46 out of 52 recognized tectonic plates (Beaulieu
where magma supply was limited but tectonic activity had appar- et al., 2013, 2015) (Fig. 2). Forty-five percent of the fields have been
ently increased bulk crustal permeability and thus the accessibility confirmed visually. The remainder is known only by inference from
to other sources of crustal heat. Understanding the complexity of plume anomalies in the water column. About 80% of all fields have
hydrothermal venting along slow-spreading ridges remains a been detected first by water column surveys rather than by sea-
major research theme (e.g., Rona et al., 2010; German et al., 2016). floor discovery. The rate of vent field discovery has been remark-
Since the late 1990s, several developments have contributed to ably steady at 20/yr since the early 1980s, with new mid-ocean
maintaining the pace of vent field discovery. First, the systematic ridge (MOR) vent fields being logged about twice as fast as those
exploration of the Kermadec arc (de Ronde et al., 2001) found on arcs and BASCs (Fig. 3). Between 2000 and 2010, an increase
abundant active hydrothermalism, thus energizing interest in arcs in the discovery rate of vent fields on arcs and BASCs resulted in
E.T. Baker / Ore Geology Reviews 86 (2017) 55–69 57
Fig. 1. (a) Jets of sulfur (112 °C) shooting out from holes in sediment-covered seafloor. Courtesy of MARUM, University of Bremen, and NOAA-PMEL. (b) Large chimneys,
reaching 35–40 m in height, form close to each other at a depth of 1555 m discharging fluids at 250 °C. Courtesy of MARUM, University of Bremen, and NOAA-PMEL. (c)
350 °C fluids discharge from a black smoker. Courtesy NOAA Okeanos Explorer Program. (d) Riftia tubeworms colonize diffuse vent habitats between broken pieces of lava.
Courtesy of NOAA Okeanos Explorer Program. (e) White flocculent mats in and around the extremely gassy, high-temperature (>100 °C) white smokers at Champagne Vent.
Image courtesy of Submarine Ring of Fire 2004 Exploration, NOAA Vents Program. (f) A sampler gathers the top layer of a microbial mat discharging diffuse fluids (17 °C).
Courtesy of Submarine Ring of Fire 2014 – Ironman, NSF/NOAA, Jason, Copyright Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute.
a decline in the discovery of MOR sites. The near-constant overall discrete sampling) and uncertainty in discriminating individual
discovery rate, including the compensating changes in MOR and vent fields from water column data.
arc/BASC discoveries in the early 2000s, suggests that the global A linear regression of Fs against full spreading rate gives:
resources applied to hydrothermal exploration have changed little F s ¼ 0:81 þ 0:024us ; r ¼ 0:53;
in many decades.
where us is weighted average full spreading rate (mm/yr) for each
section (Fig. 5). The most distant outlier and highest Fs value is
2.1. Ocean spreading ridges the Eastern Lau Spreading Center (ELSC), a BASC section adjacent
to the Kermadec volcanic arc, where spreading rates increase from
Ocean Spreading Ridges (OSRs, the sum of MORs and BASCs) 39 to 96 mm/yr from south to north (Zellmer and Taylor, 2001). The
total 71,000 km and account for 75% (484) of all known vent ELSC has been a sustained focus of hydrothermal exploration,
fields. Three-quarters of those occur on MORs. Because total ridge undergoing multiple repeat plume surveys in both 2004 and
length increases with declining spreading rate, the total number of 2008, thus greatly increasing the likelihood of vent field discovery.
discovered vent fields on OSRs also declines roughly with increas- Also, the closeness of the southern end of the ELSC to the Kermadec
ing spreading rate (Fig. 4a). Conversely, vent field spatial fre- arc (40 km) may increase the magmatic heat available for venting
quency, Fs (fields/100 km of strike length), increases with above that normally available to a ridge spreading at 40 mm/yr
spreading rate (Fig. 4b), corresponding to an increase in the magma (Martinez et al., 2006).
budget and thus available heat sources. The mean Fs from the glo- We obtain a clearer view of the relationship between spreading
bal dataset is 1.1 ± 0.91. However, much of the variability in this rate and Fs by binning the data according to standard spreading-
global view of Fs is a function of exploration history. rate intervals (Fig. 5). At any given spreading rate, hydrothermal
To obtain a more accurate estimate of how Fs varies with activity varies spatially because different ridge sections can
spreading rate, and thus to better predict the total inventory of express different stages of magmatic or amagmatic evolution
vent fields, we examine only well-surveyed ridge sections. (e.g., Macdonald and Fox, 1988). The larger the sample size (i.e.,
Beaulieu et al. (2015), using the InterRidge Database, identified ridge length surveyed) at a given spreading rate, the more repre-
27 lengthy (>240 km) sections spanning the entire range of spread- sentative the Fs value. Thus, for the binned values:
ing rates (Table 1). Scatter among these 27 sections is expected due
to differences in survey effort (e.g., survey length, continuous or F s ¼ 0:76 þ 0:022us ; r ¼ 0:96:
Fig. 2. Global map of known (confirmed and inferred) vent fields discovered prior to 2000 (black squares) and afterward (black circles). Color of oceanic spreading ridges
indicates spreading rate categorized to ultraslow (<20 mm/yr), slow (20–50 mm/yr), intermediate (50–80 mm/yr), fast (80–140 mm/yr), or superfast (>140 mm/yr, only
present on the East Pacific Rise from 15° to 32°S, and mostly obscured by the vent field symbols). Other information includes plate boundaries (Bird, 2003), thin black lines;
Exclusive Economic Zones (VLIZ, 2009), thin gray lines; and hotspots (Husson and Conrad, 2012), gray open stars. Figure adapted from Beaulieu et al. (2015).
Fig. 3. Yearly trend of vent field discovery since 1980, based on the InterRidge
Database compilation. Note that an increase in the discovery rate on back-arc
spreading centers (BASCs) and arcs from 2000 to 2010 led to a slowing of discovery
on mid-ocean ridges (MORs) during that time. Linear least-squares regression fits to
each data set give a discovery rate of 10/yr on MORs and 4/yr on BASCs and arcs
(r >0.96 for each line). Fig. 4. Relationships between OSR spreading rate (binned in 10 mm/yr increments)
and vent field population. (a) Most known vent fields occur on slow-spreading OSRs
(<55 mm/yr) because those ridges comprise 60% of total ridge length. (b) The
spatial frequency of known vent fields (Fs, fields/100 km) roughly increases with
spreading rate, which is a proxy for the magmatic heat budget. These trends are
This fit has slope and intercepts little different than the unbinned
significantly controlled by the degree of exploration conducted in each spreading
regression but greatly increases the correlation coefficient. This rate bin (colored bars in (a)). For example, low Fs values in the 110 and 130 mm/yr
regression is slightly different than that of Beaulieu et al. (2015), bins (b) correspond to a high percentage of unsurveyed ridge crest length (blue
where only 21 of the 27 ridge segments were used. bars) compared to other fast-spreading ridges.
Table 1
Standard survey results from ridge sections longer than 200 km (Beaulieu et al., 2015).
Region Surveyed portion Length (km) Mean full spreading rate Known vent fields Vent field frequency Mean vent spacing
(mm/yr) (sites/100 km) (km)
SWIR 58.5°–60.5°E & 430 9.8 7 1.6 61
63.5°–66°E
Gakkel Ridge 6°W–85°E 965 11.8 9 0.9 108
SWIR 49°–52°E 270 11.9 4 1.5 68
SWIR 10°–16°E 416 13.5 6 1.4 69
SWIR 16°–23°E 484 13.7 2 0.4 244
Reykjanes Ridge 57.7°–63°N 750 19.8 3 0.4 250
N MAR 35.7°–38°N 340 20.3 12 3.5 28
N MAR 27°–30°N 375 23.1 3 0.8 125
N MAR 11°–21°N 935 25.5 15 1.6 62
Woodlark Ridge 151.5°–155.8°E 520 30.6 3 0.6 172
Carlsberg Ridge 2°–4.5°N 440 30.7 2 0.5 222
S MAR 2.5°–6.8°S 450 32.4 2 0.4 227
S MAR 7°–11°S 450 33.2 4 0.9 113
CIR 8°–17°S 738 36.2 10 1.4 74
CIR 18.3°–20.8°S 300 42.3 3 1 100
Galápagos Ridge 89.5°–95.5°W 560 53.2 8 1.4 70
Gorda Ridge 41°–43°N 240 55.6 5 2.1 48
JdFR 44.5°–48.3° N 480 56.1 19 4.0 25
ELSC/VFR 19.5°–23°S 400 64.4 32 8 12
SEIR 36–40°S 445 64.4 2 0.5 222
SEIR 77–100°E 1600 68.1 37 1.8 56
N EPR 15.5–18.5°N 335 77 6 1.8 56
NELSC, MTJ, FRSC 14.7°–17.7°S 340 87.6 14 4.1 24
N EPR 8.7–13.2°N 515 98.1 21 4.1 24
Manus Basin 148°–152°E 405 101.4 11 2.7 37
S EPR 13.5–18.6°S 585 145.4 24 4.1 24
S EPR 27.5–32.3°S 440 158.3 14 3.2 31
Abbreviations: SWIR, Southwest Indian Ridge; MAR, Mid-Atlantic Ridge; CIR, Central Ridge; JdFR, Juan de Fuca Ridge; ELSC, Eastern Lau Spreading Center; VFR, Valu Fa Ridge;
SEIR, Southeast Indian Ridge; NELSC, Northeast Lau Spreading Center; MTJ; MangatoluTriple Junction; FRSC, Fonualei Ridge Spreading Center; EPR, East Pacific Rise. Further
details about each section can be found in Beaulieu et al. (2015).
Fig. 6. The distribution of already discovered (red bars) and predicted (blue bars)
OSR vent fields vs. spreading rate. Intervals where the ratio of predicted/discovered
vents is low correspond to areas of concentrated exploration.
from 25 km at superfast spreading (Fs = 4.1 at 150 mm/yr) to

100 km at ultraslow spreading (Fs = 1.0 at 10 mm/yr). These
separation estimates are closer than those calculated using an
Fig. 5. Vent field spatial frequency, Fs, vs. spreading rate (us) for 27 OSR sections
entirely different method by Hannington et al. (2014) (174 km
(red circles). A solid black line shows least-squares regression (Fs = 0.81 + 0.024us,
r = 0.53) trend, with the ±95% confidence intervals of the slope shown by the gray for ‘‘slow” ridges and 54 km for ‘‘fast”) because their calculation
curves. Binning the data by five spreading rate intervals (blue squares, bars show ±1 included only those fields with SMS deposits >100 m2. The geo-
standard deviations) gives the same regression with a much-improved fit (r = 0.96). logical implications of an Fs value of 1 even at zero spreading
A least-squares fit forced through the origin (purple dashed line) shows a
rate (and presumably zero magmatic budget) remain unclear.
hypothetical trend (Fs = 0.033us) if vent fields were powered only by heat from
axial magma chambers. See Table 1 for details of each ridge section.
This result could simply be a product of undersampling, given
that the 95% confidence interval of the slope has an intercept
value that includes Fs = 0 (Fig. 5).
It is also possible that a linear fit to the existing sample set
Based on the binned data, a more representative global mean poorly represents the true global population. Because the fastest
Fs value (at the global mean spreading rate of 50 mm/yr) is 1.9 spreading ridges are undersampled (with surveys in only two
fields/100 km. Mean spacing of known vent fields thus ranges areas), the true Fs value for such ridges may be higher and thus
supportive of a linear fit where Fs = 0 at zero spreading rate. Or,

geological processes may dictate that the rate of vent field forma-
tion slows with increasing spreading rate, and so a nonlinear rela-
tionship is appropriate. Evaluation of such alternatives awaits
further exploration.
Alternatively, we can frame a geologically based hypothesis
stating that Fs on slow and ultraslow ridges exceeds the global
trend because magmatic heat is supplemented by heat from man-
tle rocks and serpentinization (Baker and German, 2004; German
et al., 2016) (see the alternative fit in Fig. 5). Even in a magma
desert, these ridges have access to significant crustal heat
(Cannat et al., 2004). At a full spreading rate of 25 mm/yr, for
example, the magmatic heat available for hydrothermal systems
should be 18–25 MW/km of ridge crest. For fully amagmatic
spreading at the same rate, heat from cooling peridotites and ser-
pentinization (only 3% of the total) supplies 16 MW/km. Even at
ultraslow rates (10 mm/yr), 9 MW/km is available from amag-
matic heat sources. A mix of magmatic segments linked by non-
transform overlaps where mantle rocks are exposed could mine
heat from both processes, thus leading to an abnormally high Fs
value such as at 36°–38°N on the MAR (Table 1). This ridge section
includes seven magmatic segments linked by non-transform over-
laps where exposed peridotites and gabbros are common (German
and Parson, 1996; Gràcia et al., 2000). Nine fields have been Fig. 8. Depth distribution of known vent fields among MORs (red bars), BASCs (blue
reported on the magmatic segments, and four more in tectonic set- bars), and arcs (green bars). The peak at 2300–2800 m corresponds to the
tings near the overlaps. predominant axial depth of OSRs. Figure adapted from Beaulieu et al. (2013).
Assuming that the binned regression is valid, it can be used to

estimate the total inventory of seafloor vent fields (Baker and
German, 2004; Beaulieu et al., 2015). Applying that relation to
the global distribution of ridge spreading rates binned at 10 mm/ 2001). The 22,000 km of arcs with a submarine component are
yr intervals yields a total population of 1305 (with 95% confidence divided between 7000 km of intraoceanic arcs and 15,000 km of
limits 713–1853) (Fig. 6). island arcs (de Ronde et al., 2003). The western Pacific hosts 93%
(by length) of these arcs. Intraoceanic arcs have ocean crust on
either side, are primarily submarine, and host an estimated 203
2.2. Volcanic arcs submarine volcanoes, of which 43% are known to be hydrother-
mally active (de Ronde et al., 2003; Baker et al., 2008a). Island arcs
Submarine volcanic arcs extend for fully a third of the length of are underlain by continental crust, are primarily subaerial, and 42%
OSRs, but systematic investigation of their hydrothermal venting of their 57 known submarine volcanoes are hydrothermally active.
only began in 1999 along the Kermadec arc (de Ronde et al., On a third (by length) of island arcs, no reliable estimate of the
number of submarine volcanoes yet exists (Fig. 7).
For well-explored intraoceanic arcs, such as the Mariana and
Kermadec-Tonga, Fs = 1.8/100 km, comparable to OSRs. By contrast,
for the explored island arcs—Aeolian, Solomon, and Tabar-Lihir-
Tanga-Feni—Fs = 0.9/100 km. Assuming that these values reliably
represent each volcanic arc type, we can roughly evaluate the
hydrothermal impact of arcs compared to OSRs. On a distance-
normalized basis, the percentage of vent fields found on arcs
(Fs,arc) is:

F s;arc ¼ ð7000 km ð1:8=100 kmÞ

þ 15000 km ð0:9=100 kmÞÞ=ð71000 km ð2=100 kmÞÞ ¼ 18%
This result is less than the present percentage of known arc vent
fields in the InterRidge Database (27%), probably reflecting the fact
that a higher percentage of arc length (27%) than OSR length (13%)
has been well explored (Fig. 4a). Roughly then, arcs might con-
tribute about one-fifth of the chemical discharge estimated from
OSRs, provided we assume equivalent mean fluxes for individual
fields on arcs and OSRs, an equivalence that remains speculative.
Further, this estimate requires that Fs on the few arcs already stud-
Fig. 7. The population of known (blue bars) and hydrothermally active (red bars) ied is comparable to that of unexplored intraoceanic and island arcs.
submarine volcanoes on arcs. Bold names indicate five intraoceanic arcs and regular Even with these qualifications, arcs are likely to be an important
type names indicate 16 island arcs. Intraoceanic arcs, where submarine volcanoes
are common, have been explored more thoroughly than most island arcs. The
contributor to the global hydrothermal budget. In fact, chemically
Aeolian, Solomon, and TLTF (Tabar-Lihir-Tanga-Feni) arcs are the best explored and environmentally, the impact may be even more significant
island arcs for hydrothermal activity, while on several island arcs no submarine than the 18% estimated here. Many important chemical species
volcanoes have yet been identified. are often more highly concentrated in arc hydrothermal fluids than
in OSR fluids, such as the magmatic gases CO2-SO2-H2S and ele- The most significant trend in the jurisdictional pattern of vent
mental S and Fe (de Ronde et al., 2001; Massoth et al., 2007; fields is the rise of hydrothermal exploration and discovery in
Resing et al., 2009). Various S and Fe species are critical nutrients national Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) since the turn of the cen-
for microbial life at hydrothermal ecosystems (e.g., Kelley et al., tury (Beaulieu et al., 2013). Prior to 2000, 50% of all known vent
2002). Hydrothermal flux from arcs also differs from OSR injections fields were in the high seas. As of 2015, that percentage had fallen
in that it dominates the upper 1300 m of the ocean (Fig. 8). to 38%, largely due to operations in the volcanic arcs and BASCs of
Although no direct measurements of Fe fertilization have yet been the western Pacific. A quarter of all vent fields discovered since
conducted above hydrothermally active arc volcanoes, Fe intro- 2000 occurred in the Tongan EEZ, with EEZs of the USA (Northern
duced into shallow waters not only by volcanic eruptions Mariana Islands and Guam) and New Zealand each contributing a
(Achterberg et al., 2013) but also by shallow venting and Fe-rich further 5% (Fig. 9).
metalliferous sediments (Coale et al., 1996) have been linked to Commercial and National mining interests have played a key
increased phytoplankton production. role in exploration of the western Pacific since 2000. Nautilus Min-
erals, Inc., has some 500,000 km2 of granted and applied-for min-
ing tenements (see nautilusminerals.com). The first commercial
mining lease for deep-sea sulfide deposits was granted to Nautilus
2.3. Global depth and jurisdictional patterns in 2011 by Papua New Guinea for the Solwara 1 field in the Manus
Basin. National mining interests have focused on high seas regions
The depth distribution of known vent fields is bimodal, domi- (termed ‘‘The Area” by the International Seabed Authority, or ISA).
nated at depths below 1300 m by fields on spreading ridges After regulations on prospecting and exploration for polymetallic
and at shallower depths by fields on arcs (Fig. 8). High- sulfides in The Area were adopted by the ISA in 2010, the first
temperature, black smoker vents are now known to range from two sets of blocks (each covering 10,000 km2) were granted in
345 m (East Diamante on the Mariana arc) (Embley et al., 2007) 2011 to China at the Southwest Indian Ridge and the Russian Fed-
to 4960 m (Piccard/Beebe on the mid-Cayman Trough) (Connelly eration at the northern MAR. Additional applications have been
et al., 2012). Because the two-phase (boiling) curve for hydrother- approved for the Republic of Korea, the Federal Republic of Ger-
mal fluids is a function of pressure (Bischoff and Rosenbauer, many, and the Institut Francais de Recherche pour l’Exploitation
1984), depth exerts a powerful control on vent temperature. Thus, de la Mer. A minimum estimate for the number of known vent
median values of the 170 reported maximum fluid temperatures in fields in areas controlled by these commercial and national inter-
the InterRidge Database are 133 °C for arc vents and 269 °C for OSR ests is 100. The political visibility of seafloor mining is empha-
vents. Nevertheless, we can surmise that a significant majority of sized by the 2015 G-7 Leaders’ Declaration (see whitehouse.gov/
inferred fields host high-temperature venting because most have the-press-office/2015/06/08/g-7-leaders-declaration), which specif-
been located by detection of an optical plume, which generally ically stated the need for regulatory certainty, investment
requires temperatures in excess of 100 °C (and predominantly
>300 °C) to produce the dissolved metals that precipitate into par-
ticles. This majority may decline, however, as new sensor technol-
ogy makes detection of low-temperature, particle-poor plumes
more reliable (see Section 3.2).
Fig. 10. Examples of hydrothermal vent exploration conducted primarily by

systematic vertical casts. (a) A 2004 survey of the Fonualei Rift and Spreading
Center, a BASC just west of the Kermadec arc. Vertical black lines show locations of
individual profiles from which the contoured LBS data were derived. Note that the
contouring is coarse, creating arbitrary plume dimensions and long ridge areas of no
information. Figure adapted from German et al. (2006). (b) Expeditions in 1999 and
2002 along the Kermadec arc. Hash marks at the panel top mark vertical casts by a
CTD/sensor package, occasionally supplemented by CTD/sensor tows (e.g., at
Fig. 9. Jurisdictional distribution of vent fields before 2000 (red bars) and presently volcanoes near 31° and 35°S). LBS anomalies above various volcano summits mark
(blue bars) among the High Seas and countries with >10 known vent fields in their active hydrothermal activity. The white vertical line separates the two surveys.
Exclusive Economic Zones. Vent exploration in the western Pacific since 2000 has Data from the two surveys were gridded and contoured separately; differences in
greatly increased the known vent population in the EEZs of several countries. the surface layer are due to the time separating the two surveys and seasonal
Figure adapted from Beaulieu et al. (2013). influences. Figure adapted from de Ronde et al. (2007).
Fig. 11. Example of hydrothermal vent exploration conducted primarily by tows along the superfast-spreading southern East Pacific Rise (Baker et al., 2002; Walker et al.,
2004). (a) Combined LBS plume anomalies from six CTD/sensor tow-yos. (b) Detail of portions of two overlapping tow-yos showing the CTD/sensor path between 2000 and
2400 m (black sawtooth pattern). (c) Detail of the same plumes mapped 1 day later using a horizontally towed side-scan sonar vehicle with six LBS sensors attached to the
tow line (black quasi-horizontal lines). A high-temperature vent field was discovered in 1999 at 31.15°, where the LBS anomalies are closest to the seafloor (Lupton et al.,
1999), but many other vent fields are also likely.
predictability, and the need for environmental protection in all as a side-scan sonar is towed at a fixed altitude above the seafloor
deep-sea mining activities. (German et al., 1998) (Fig. 11c). In either case, the maximum tow
speed is 4 km/hr. An emerging trend in spatially continuous
exploration is long-range Autonomous Underwater Vehicles
3. The future of exploration (AUVs). For decades, AUVs have successfully accomplished detailed
operations in limited areas while attended by a surface ship
3.1. Standard exploration techniques (German et al., 2008; Baker et al., 2012), but truly long-range oper-
ations have been challenging. One success is a 2013 expedition to
Surface-ship exploration techniques based on detecting dis- the southern MAR, where the AUV ABYSS discovered 11 new
charge from active venting presently fall into two categories: plume fields by cruising 16 ridge segments between 13° and
one-dimensional, full-water-column profiles; and two- 33°S, covering >100 km on each dive for a total of 1161 km
dimensional, near-bottom surveying. In either case, instrument (Petersen et al., 2013). Another novel methodology is remote
packages range from a single self-contained sensor to a full instru- detection of hydrothermal bubble plumes using multibeam sonar
ment package such as a Conductivity-Temperature-Depth (CTD) on a surface ship. Chadwick et al. (2014) observed plumes of CO2
system interfaced with sensors and sampling bottles (Baker et al., bubbles rising from the 560-m-deep summit of an erupting vol-
1995). Plumes are standardly detected by hydrographic anomalies, cano on the Mariana arc. Temporal variability in plume height
such as changes in the potential temperature/salinity ratio, and, and volume imply that this technique could be used to monitor
with more precision and spatial range, by optical anomalies, either the level of eruptive activity.
light scattering or transmission.
A basic sampling strategy is simply vertical casts, widely (sev-
eral kilometers) spaced along a ridge axis (German et al., 2006) 3.2. ‘‘Best practices” exploration
or, on arcs, over the summits of discrete volcanic edifices (de
Ronde et al., 2007) (Fig. 10). Such surveys account for 80% of all Decades of standard exploration, primarily focused on high-
vent fields discovered by plume detection. An efficient strategy temperature venting, have fashioned a ‘‘common knowledge” that
for many investigations is combining plume detection with other tens to hundreds of kilometers separate vent fields (Edmonds,
over-the-side wire operations, such as adding MAPRs to rock cor- 2010; Hannington et al., 2014; Beaulieu et al., 2015). This view is
ing and dredging wires (e.g., Scheirer et al., 1998; Edmonds et al., fostered by survey techniques that are discontinuous, overlook iso-
2003; German et al., 2006). Although this strategy is common lated diffuse flow, and undercount closely spaced sites. ‘‘Best prac-
because it costs little in additional ship time, plumes from smaller tices” exploration incorporates improved technology to overcome
vent fields can be easily missed. these shortcomings.
Because hydrothermal plumes are dynamic features and vents Interest in low-temperature diffuse flow fields, especially those
are irregularly spaced, comprehensive exploration requires a spa- isolated from high-temperature fields, has recently accelerated.
tially continuous two-dimensional survey (Fig. 11a). Most common New results from venting hosted in magma-dominated crust indi-
are ‘‘tow-yos,” where a CTD package is continually raised and low- cate that Fe, a biologically limiting nutrient in many oceanic
ered through a plume while slowly steaming along a track line regions, may be preferentially supplied to the ocean interior by
(Baker et al., 1985) (Fig. 11b). Alternatively, plume sensors (such low-temperature diffuse flow (German et al., 2015). Diffuse flow
as MAPRs) can be arrayed along a tow cable as an instrument such is ubiquitous around high-temperature fields but scarcely known
Table 2
Best practices survey results from ridge sections longer than 200 km.
Region Surveyed Length Mean full spreading rate Known vent Vent field frequency Mean vent spacing
portion (km) (mm/yr) fields (sites/100 km) (km)
Galápagos Ridge 91°–94.9°W 430 53.2 33 7.7 13
Galápagos Ridge 85.8°–90.6°W 520 60 29 5.6 19
ELSC/VFR 19.3°–22.8°S 420 64.4 96 22.8 4.2
N EPR 9°–10°N 110 100 27 24.5 4.1
Abbreviations: ELSC, Eastern Lau Spreading Center; VFR, Valu Fa Ridge; EPR, East Pacific Rise.
elsewhere (Rose Garden, the first hydrothermal field discovered hydrothermal tracers such as Mn, Fe, and CH4. Such sensors were
(Corliss et al., 1979), is a rare example). On slow-spreading ridge developed long ago (Johnson et al., 1986; Massoth et al., 1998)
segments where magma is uncommon but mantle peridotites are but have proved overly complex and impractical to date.
exposed, vent fields can be essentially devoid of metals but rich
in biologically active CH4 and H2 (Larson et al., 2015). Such fields, 3.3. Examples of ‘‘best practices” surveys
e.g., Lost City (Kelley et al., 2001), may be common but are almost
immune to detection by optical or thermal sensors. In this section I describe results from ‘‘best practices” surveys at
High-temperature fields are readily discoverable using widely four locations, two on MORs, one on a BASC, and one on a large arc
dispersing particle-rich plumes, but the quasi-conservative nature volcano (Table 2). For each of the OSR sections I compare the vent
of these plumes can also mask the true inventory of clustered fields field distribution given in the InterRidge Database to that deter-
that produce comingled plumes. A classic example is the Endeav- mined by recent spatially continuous surveys using turbidity and
our segment of the Juan de Fuca Ridge, where various exploration ORP sensors. At the EPR ridge section we also compare these most
efforts, including many plume mapping operations, have occurred recent data to ‘‘ground-truthing” by intensive camera tows in the
almost annually since the early 1980s (Kelley et al., 2012). At least same area. The four surveys were accomplished using a variety
eight active fields populate only 15 km of the axis, but it took more of methods: horizontal tow using ORP-equipped MAPRs attached
than two decades (1982–2005) to identify all these fields! Discrim- to the tow cable of a ROV, horizontal tow with an ORP sensor on
inating among clustered fields is not merely an accounting effort a side-scan sonar vehicle, CTD tow-yo, and sensors embedded in
but is vital for understanding processes such as the circulation of the AUV ABE. Baker et al. (2016) provide the detailed data analyses
crustal fluids in the shallow crust. by which the inferred fields on the OSR segments were deter-
A solution to these exploration shortcomings is to add sensor mined. In each case plume anomalies closer than 1 km are grouped
capability to detect highly ephemeral tracers emitted by vents of as a single vent field. This precision is comparable to that achieved
all temperatures. Oxidation-Reduction Potential (ORP, sometimes by AUVs mapping ORP anomalies in neutrally buoyant plumes dur-
called Eh) sensors have been used since the mid-1990s to identify ing tightly gridded surveys (e.g., German et al., 2008).
hydrothermal discharge (e.g., Henry et al., 2002), but have seldom
been used as a systematic exploration tool. ORP is sensitive to 3.3.1. East Pacific Rise, 9°–10°N
hydrothermal discharge at all temperatures because it detects even The EPR 9°–10°N is a fast-spreading (110 mm/yr), first-order
minute concentrations of reduced hydrothermal chemicals (e.g., segment that ranks among the most studied of the global OSR sys-
Fe2+, HS, H2) that are out of equilibrium with the oxidizing ocean tem (Fornari et al., 2012). Numerous camera tows and dozens of
(Nakamura et al., 2000; Walker et al., 2007). Because these chem- submersible and ROV dives have scrutinized the area since the
icals rapidly oxidize or metabolize close (1 km (Stranne et al., 1980s. The InterRidge Database lists eight vent fields; several
2010)) to their seafloor source, ORP signals provide a high- encompass multiple discharge sources (chimneys and diffuse flow)
resolution measurement of vent-field distribution that discrimi- within short ridge lengths (61 km). In 2011, the segment was
nates among closely spaced sources. There is a pressing need for surveyed from 9.06° to 10.03°N (110 km) with MAPRs attached
deep-sea real-time sensors that can quantitatively measure to the JASON ROV at nominal altitudes of 45 m and 60 m above
Fig. 12. Indicators of hydrothermal activity along the northern East Pacific Rise. Data collected by single ORP and LBS sensors on a remotely operated vehicle 60 m above
bottom. (a) Distribution of InterRidge sites (black arrows) and sites determined by this survey (yellow circles). Multiple sites occur in a small area near 9.65°–9.68°N. (b)
Continuous ORP (red) and LBS (blue, given in Nephelometric Turbidity Units) data. (c) Locations of active vents (enumerated vents, red bars) and diffuse flow or vent biology
(presence/absence only, cyan bars) from historical camera tows and submersible observations, binned at 0.93 km (0.0083°) intervals (Haymon et al., 1991; Haymon and
White, 2004). Following Haymon and White (2004), areas south of 9.45°N with low (1–4) animal frequencies are not included here. Figure adapted from Baker et al. (2016).
Fig. 13. Indicators of hydrothermal activity along the eastern Galápagos Spreading Center. Data collected west of 89.6°W by an ORP sensor on a tow package 120 m above
bottom and by LBS sensors arrayed along the towline (as in Fig. 11c), and east of 89°W by ORP and LBS sensors on a towed instrument package continuously cycled between
300 m and 20 m above bottom (as in Fig. 11b). (a) Distribution of InterRidge sites (black arrows) and sites detected by this survey (yellow circles). (b) Continuous ORP (red)
and LBS (blue) data. Figure adapted from Baker et al. (2016).
bottom during a single along-axis tow (Fig. 12) (Baker et al., 2016). visual observations in 2002 (Shank et al., 2003) and 2011 (Shank
The combination of 24 optical and 23 ORP anomalies identified 27 et al., 2012)—the InterRidge Database lists only seven fields
distinct fields (i.e., separated by >1 km). The Fs is thus 24.5, almost (Fig. 13). Detailed analyses of the ORP data from 2005 and 2011
four times higher than the value of 7.3 estimated from the Inter- found 38 ORP and 14 light back-scattering (LBS) anomalies identi-
Ridge Database. Fields with combined optical and ORP anomalies fying 29 distinct vent fields. Thus, the Fs value increases from 0.7
are considered high-temperature, whereas those with ORP alone using the InterRidge Database to 5.6.
(or predominant) are likely to be diffuse flow. The eastern GSC provides a good example of how ORP data can
Support for a high concentration of vent fields on this segment discriminate separate vent fields from a single combined optical
comes from extensive and thorough seafloor visual surveys (>40% plume. A uniform optical plume centered near 88.3°W extends
coverage within 100 m of the ridge axis itself) conducted in 1989 >40 km along axis, whereas robust ORP anomalies pinpoint the
(Haymon et al., 1991; Haymon and White, 2004) (Fig. 12c). location of three individual fields beneath the optical plume.
Between 9.15° and 9.9°N, indications of active venting were
observed on camera tows in 38 of 90 intervals of 0.0083° (0.50 ) lat- 3.3.3. Eastern Lau Spreading Center, 19°–23°S
itude (interval length = 0.93 km, which approximates the 1 km As noted in Section 2.1, both concentrated exploration activity
plume resolution). These observations lead to Fs = 39, comparable and geologic setting along a 420 km stretch of the ELSC apparently
to our estimate of 24.5. Another example comes from the southern contribute to an unusually high number of active fields (31) in the
EPR between 17.25° and 18.67°S (spreading rate = 150 mm/yr). InterRidge Database. Baker et al. (2016) re-analyzed ORP and LBS
Inventories from camera tows there (O’Neill, 1998; Haymon and data from the two most areally complete surveys, which collected
White, 2004) identified active venting in 56 of 162 intervals of data from 19.3° to 22.8°S in 2004 along two parallel track lines,
0.0083° latitude (0.95 km), equivalent to an Fs = 36. nominally 600 m apart (Martinez et al., 2006). Plume data were
collected by a single ORP sensor on a side-scan sonar 120 m
3.3.2. Eastern Galápagos Spreading Center, 85.7°–91°W above bottom and LBS sensors arrayed along the towline
The intermediate-rate (60 mm/yr), 520-km-long eastern GSC (Fig. 14). These surveys found 175 ORP and 54 LBS anomalies that
was the site of the first vent field discovered, Rose Garden at identify 96 fields, leading to Fs = 22.8, three times the InterRidge
86°W (Corliss et al., 1979), but no systematic hydrothermal sur- value of 8.
veys of this ridge section were undertaken until 2005/06 (Baker
et al., 2008b) and 2011 (Shank et al., 2012). Based on four data 3.3.4. Brothers Volcano, Kermadec arc, 35°S
sets—the original Rose Garden discovery, the partial 2005/06 sur- This survey exemplifies a different aspect of exploration, the
vey that used a single ORP sensor on a side-scan sonar vehicle, scrutiny of a confined portion of seafloor by methods that corre-
optical plume data from a CTD tow-yo (Shank et al., 2012), and spond to the traditional terrestrial approach of geological mapping
Fig. 14. Indicators of hydrothermal activity along the Eastern Lau Spreading Center. Data collected along two parallel track lines, nominally 600 m apart, by an ORP sensor
on a tow package 120 m above bottom and by LBS sensors arrayed along the towline. (a) Distribution of InterRidge sites (black arrows) and sites determined by this survey
(yellow circles). (b) Continuous ORP (red and orange) and LBS (blues) data for both track lines. Figure adapted from Baker et al. (2016).
Fig. 15. (a) Brothers Caldera, with Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV)-derived bathymetry overlain on surface-ship bathymetry using EM300 sonar. Tracks of eight 2007
AUV dives and one 2011 AUV dive shown by colored lines. (b) Distribution of ORP anomalies, here displayed as the time derivative (dORP/dt (mV/s) anomalies, color-coded to
plume intensity, which increases as dORP/dt values become more negative). (c) Summary of predicted hydrothermal discharge types in Brothers Caldera and cones, based on
the areal distributions of anomalies of turbidity, ORP, and temperature. Figure adapted from Baker et al. (2012).
patchiness and very limited visual data frustrated any ability to

identify the location of all seafloor sources (de Ronde et al.,
2011). In 2007 and 2011, however, the AUV ABE needed a mere
118 h of survey time to map the fine-scale distribution of near-
bottom (50 m altitude) hydrothermal plumes throughout the
entire caldera, compiling a detailed view of the caldera-wide distri-
bution and nature of seafloor venting (Baker et al., 2012).
Sensors on ABE simultaneously measured hydrothermal plume
anomalies in temperature, LBS, and ORP every 2–3 m along tracks
separated by 50 m horizontally, covering the entire caldera wall
and floor (Fig. 15a). Systematic variations in the LBS/temperature
ratio, combined with the location of ORP anomalies (Fig. 15b),
mapped the location of different types of fluid discharge (Fig. 15c).
This program demonstrated that advanced deep-sea survey tech-
niques using AUVs is an indispensable and cost-effective tool for
acquiring a comprehensive understanding of the relationship
between hydrothermal venting and geology on individual volca-
noes and vent-field-sized areas on OSRs.
3.4. A new view of vent field spatial frequency

Fig. 16. Scatter plot of site frequency (left axis) and site separation (right axis) vs.
spreading rate for 27 ridge sections using data from the InterRidge Database (red Adding the results from these ridge sections to the plot of exist-
dots) (see Fig. 5). The three sections shown in Figs. 12–14, plus additional data from ing Fs vs. us data yields a radically different alternative for the pop-
other ridge sections, are symbol-coded: eastern Galápagos Spreading Center (eGSC, ulation of active vent fields (Fig. 16). If these new results are
inverted triangles), central Galápagos Spreading Center (cGSC, circles), Eastern Lau
Spreading Center (ELSC, diamonds), northern East Pacific Rise (nEPR, squares), and
representative of all fast-spreading ridges—still a speculative
southern East Pacific Rise (sEPR, skewed triangles). Results for these sections are hypothesis—such ridges may have vent populations perhaps much
from InterRidge Database (large red symbols), Baker et al. (2016) (green), and higher than currently assumed. Moreover, isolated ORP-only fields
results from visual seafloor observations (Haymon et al., 1991; Haymon and White, were surprisingly common, making up 25% of observed fields on
2004) (purple). InterRidge values for the nEPR and sEPR (large red symbols) are for
these sections. However, no conclusion about a true global inven-
portions of the full sections (red dots) where ORP data and/or seafloor observations
are available. Double-headed horizontal arrow for the ELSC indicates the range of tory can be reached without further exploration on slow-spreading
spreading rates for that ridge section. All other sections have uniform spreading ridges, which include 45% of the presently predicted global
rates. Figure adapted from Baker et al. (2016). inventory of vent fields (Fig. 6). Exploration on slow ridges is
impeded both by the vast expanse of available exploration areas
and the complexity of the geology. Although the axial length of
slow ridges compares with fast ridges, the width and depth of
the axial valleys makes the area available for vent creation, and
on a human scale. The summit caldera of Brothers Volcano is thus requiring exploration, at least an order of magnitude greater.
roughly 3 km in diameter, with a rim depth of 1500 m and a floor The great abundance of mantle rocks exposed on slow ridges, and
depth exceeding 1850 m (Fig. 15a). Within the caldera, a large cone the likelihood of abundant vent fields populating those rocks (e.g.,
rises to 1200 m. Camera tows, dredges, plume surveys, and sub- Kelley et al., 2001; Escartin et al., 2008; Connelly et al., 2012;
mersible operations during seven cruises from 1996 to 2005 pro- German et al., 2016), augurs well for accelerating discoveries on
vided powerful evidence of abundant venting, but plume the slow half of the global OSR system.
4. Some consequences of an expanded vent field population previously unknown plumes of dissolved Fe, coincident with the
known plumes of 3He, can be traced for thousands of kilometers.
These new results have implications more far-reaching than These observations validate a recent modeling exercise explaining
just improved accounting. For many chemical and geological pro- how diffuse fluids entrained into high-temperature discharge
cesses, the spatial distribution of vent fields is a key variable. In could provide a majority of the hydrothermal Fe injected into the
the following sections I discuss some consequences of a seafloor interior of the deep ocean (German et al., 2015). Diffuse flow fields
vent field population that is greater and more closely spaced than not associated with high-temperature discharge, such as discov-
the present ‘‘common knowledge” permits. ered on the ridge sections in Figs. 12–14, were not considered in
this model, so the model results are likely a minimum estimate
of the hydrothermal Fe supply. Some of the hydrothermal Fe that
4.1. Hydrothermal circulation in the shallow crust
escapes the MOR is ultimately supplied to the iron-deficient sur-
face waters of the Southern Ocean, where models estimate that it
The location of seafloor discharge provides our only direct infor-
supports 15% to 30% of the export carbon production south of
mation on the distribution of hydrothermal upflow sites, and thus
the Polar Front (Resing et al., 2015).
on the pattern of hydrothermal circulation in the shallow crust.
Recent high-resolution, three-dimensional circulation models for
4.3. Resources
hydrothermal fluids in the shallow crust of fast-spreading ridges
(e.g., Hasenclever et al., 2014) provide simulations that support a
The commercial utilization of SMSs has been envisioned almost
much closer spacing of vent fields than inferred strictly from the
since the discovery of hydrothermal venting (e.g., Scott, 1987), and
InterRidge Database. These models yield a vent field spacing on
mining exploration has been active since at least 2000 (see Sec-
the order of 1 km, comparable to new observations on the fast-
tion 2.3.). This effort proceeds even in the face of controversy about
spreading EPR and ELSC (Fig. 16). The agreement improves further
the true size of the resource. Diametrically opposite views on the
if we consider the modal vent spacing on those ridges, which is
magnitude of recoverable volcanogenic metals have been articu-
2 km in each case (Baker et al., 2016). Caution is called for in trans-
lated by Cathles (2011), on one hand, and Hannington (2011)
ferring the model results to the real world, as the models assume
and Hannington et al. (2014) on the other. Cathles (2011) argues
uniform permeability along axis and a constant heat flux. Geolog-
that this resource is effectively limitless; 530 Gt, more than
ical complications such as faults, varying rock types, and punctu-
600 greater than current reserves of terrestrial Cu+Zn. Recovery
ated heat sources provided by episodic eruptions remain
of almost all (>99.5%) of this resource is presently inconceivable,
unaddressed. These variations no doubt contribute to the irregular-
as it would require mining the upper crust of the entire ocean floor.
ity in vent field distributions apparent in detailed surveys (Figs. 12–
Hannington and colleagues respond that known minable SMSs on
14). The Hasenclever et al. (2014) model also predicts an increased
the neovolcanic zones of OSRs and arc volcanoes offer a Cu+Zn
spacing as the heat source (a melt lens) becomes deeper. This effect
reservoir little larger than a single year of terrestrial production
may play a role in the higher vent field spacing seen on the central
(30 Mt/yr).
GSC, where the melt lens (Detrick et al., 2002) is 1 km deeper
Here I address only how the issues discussed in this paper
than on along the northern EPR (Carbotte et al., 2013).
might affect the estimates of Hannington and colleagues.
It is instructive here to reconsider the Hannington et al. (2014)
Hannington et al. (2014) used the distribution of known SMSs
justification for a typical high-temperature field spacing of 50–
(>100 m2 area) to project the full ocean inventory of minable
100 km. They noted that to account for the high-temperature por-
(under present technology) deposits. The known distribution is
tion of the global hydrothermal heat flux (10% of 2 1012 W
strongly dependent on the exploration techniques discussed in this
(Elderfield and Schultz, 1996)), some 50,000–100,000 individual
paper, and are thus subject to the same inadequacies. The absence
black smokers are needed, each belching 2–5 MW. This combina-
of ORP data in most existing exploration results does not severely
tion could be satisfied with 1 smoker every kilometer along OSRs,
limit the discovery of actively forming SMS fields, since accumula-
or a 100-smoker field every 50–100 km. But single-smoker sites
tion requires high-temperature vents that generate robust LBS
are not uniformly arrayed along the global OSR, and 100-smoker
plumes. However, even large fields can be missed using the most
fields are not common. A more realistic (though still highly sche-
common standard exploration strategy—widely separated vertical
matic) arrangement of 4-smoker fields every 2–4 km on fast ridges
casts—so the existing SMS database must be a minimum value.
and 50-smoker fields every 25–50 km on slow ridges would also
ORP anomalies might identify sites no longer accumulating SMS
satisfy the global high-temperature heat flux requirement. Such
deposits but still venting low-temperature fluids. A prominent
an arrangement follows the presently known trend of vent field
example is the sulfide deposits at 86.15°W on the GSC (Embley
heat flux (245 ± 170 MW on fast ridges to 1669 ± 1354 MW on
et al., 1988). ORP anomalies may also aid the discovery of
slow ridges (Baker, 2007)), though these averages come from a
sediment-hosted fields where the preponderance of metals is cap-
small data suite (n = 12 sites, some measured several times).
tured before fluids reach the seafloor (Campbell et al., 1994).
Other exploration-related uncertainties also affect the
4.2. Global geochemical budgets Hannington et al. (2014) analysis. Of the 32 control areas used by
Hannington et al. (2014) to assess global SMS deposits, only one
A long-standing principal in hydrothermal chemistry held that is on an ultraslow-spreading ridge. Each control area is assumed
hydrothermal Fe little affects ocean chemistry, despite equaling to be fully explored and representative of its spreading rate. These
or exceeding the riverine Fe flux (Elderfield and Schultz, 1996), assumptions crucially apply to ultraslow ridges (<20 mm/yr),
because hydrothermal Fe was thought to be quickly and efficiently which total 25% of global OSR length and account for fully
removed from the water column by precipitation and deposition 50% of the current estimated SMS tonnage, but may not hold if
(Johnson et al., 1997). This view began to change with the discov- vent fields occur on ultraslow-spreading ridges more often than
ery that diffuse fluids can be rich in organic ligands capable of sta- predicted by the global spreading-rate trend (Fig. 5). Recent dis-
bilizing dissolved hydrothermal metals (Sander et al., 2007). coveries on ultraslow ridges of vent fields hosted on both ultra-
Recent observations and modeling demonstrates the impor- mafic rocks (Fouquet et al., 2010, and references within) and
tance of this discovery. Sampling transects across the Atlantic volcanic ridges (Pedersen et al., 2010; Tao et al., 2012; Kinsey
(Saito et al., 2013) and the Pacific (Resing et al., 2015) show that and German, 2013) support this cautionary proposition.
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Ore Geology Reviews 86 (2017) 55–69

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Ore Geology Reviews

Exploring the ocean for hydrothermal venting: New techniques, new

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4. Some consequences of an expanded vent field population . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

1. Introduction (Baker et al., 2008a) and back-arc spreading ridges (BASCs)

from 25 km at superfast spreading (Fs = 4.1 at 150 mm/yr) to

supportive of a linear fit where Fs = 0 at zero spreading rate. Or,

Assuming that the binned regression is valid, it can be used to

Fig. 10. Examples of hydrothermal vent exploration conducted primarily by

patchiness and very limited visual data frustrated any ability to

3.4. A new view of vent field spatial frequency

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