Passengers on cruise ships have reported seeing giant phantom jellyfish off the coast of Antarctica using personal submersibles. These deep-sea creatures resemble spaceships from the future and have thick ribbons streaming from their undersides.
Giant Phantom Jellyfish
Early in the year 2022, while traveling in a submersible dispatched by cruise line operator Viking, the visitors came into contact with one of the biggest invertebrate predators in the deep ocean, Stygiomedusa gigantea.
Although it has only occasionally been seen, this jellyfish may be among the biggest predatory invertebrates in the entire world. Since this fascinating species was only observed 110 times over the course of 110 years, from 1899 to 2009, there aren't much data available.
Despite being infrequently observed, it is thought that this jellyfish is widespread and can be found all over the world. This jellyfish has been spotted 109 times, according to the map above. It is almost exclusively found in the Southern Ocean, but it has also been spotted close to the United States, France, India, Spain, Africa, and New Zealand.
This does not, however, imply that the giant phantom jelly is primarily found in the Southern Ocean.
These sightings could have simply been made by coincidence as a result of research being conducted in the deep oceans of the Antarctic, such as that being done by the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR). Being considered to be deep at 1.2 leagues below the surface of the water, they prefer to live in the deep ocean.
Due to its rarity, this species has not received much research, which means that it has never been evaluated by the IUCN Red List, Amazing Life.Bio reports.
According to researchers, one individual reached a length of at least 33 feet.
Daniel Moore, the author of the study, discovered that visitors had actually seen the giant phantom jellyfish when he saw a photo of one on a visitor's camera. Given the rarity of sightings, he immediately recognized it for what it was and was overcome with excitement, Moore told Live Science.
Personal Submersibles
According to the study, biological surveys have long been carried out by submersibles at depths beyond the reach of SCUBA divers. These submersibles have typically been operated by either national or academic institutions and owned by nation-states.
However, several manufacturers began to emerge in the late 1990s into the early 2000s. U-Boat Worx, the Personal Submersibles Organization, Triton, and other companies started making PSs.
Today, the gas and oil sector has widely used these PSs for commercial, military, and recreational purposes throughout the world's oceans. However, in the polar regions, the vast bulk of PS deployments have been used for film production or, as of 2019, for purely recreational use.
PS deployment for scientific use is becoming more and more common. When these vehicles are viewed as vessels of opportunity, the growing use of PSs by the expedition cruise industry in the polar regions represents a novel research platform.
These vessels of opportunity are potentially strong assets for the scientific community, particularly when combined with the cutting-edge research facilities located aboard several new expedition cruise ships.
The study by Moore and several colleagues was recently published in the journal Polar Research.
Related Article: Rare Giant Phantom Jellyfish Seen Off California Coast: Among World's Largest at 3 Feet Wide with 33 Feet Long "Mouth-Arms"
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