The Marianas Trench

The Marianas Trench runs from approximately 11°N, 141°E to 25°N, 143°E in an arc-like pattern extending over 2,270 km in length.  The trench is the result of the collision and subduction of two crustal plates, the faster moving Pacific Plate and the slower moving Philippine Plate. Water depths in the trench range from 5,000 to 11,000 m with the deepest locations being southwest of Guam and becoming shallower

Northward.  Located within the trench is Challenger Deep (11,034 m), the deepest known area of the ocean [1].

The seafloor contains numerous hydrothermal vents formed by spreading tectonic plates [1].  These hydrothermal vents are hypothesized to be the origination of all life on earth [1].  These numerous hydrothermal vent systems scattered along the Trench support a wide variety of chemosynthetic organisms. The deep waters of the Trench also support barophilic organisms capable of surviving the cold, dark, high-pressure environment. One mud sample taken from Challenger Deep by oceanographers yielded over 200 different microorganisms [1].

 Literature Cited

1. Mariana Trench. 2003. The Mariana Trench – Biology. Accessed 18 January 2005. http://www.marianatrench.com/mariana_trench-biology_001.htm.