At Loki’s Castle in the Arctic Ocean, researchers from the
University of Bergen (UiB) have discovered a so far unknown world of volcanic
activity underwater. They hope that this can become Norway’s new national park.
In 2008, UiB researchers discovered Loki’s Castle, a field
of five active hydrothermal vents on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between Norway and
Greenland. The field contains rich metal deposits and a unique wildlife.
New discoveries
This summer a team led by the director of UiB’s Centre for
Geobiology, Professor Rolf Birger Pedersen, discovered five new hydrothermal
vents in Loki’s Castle. The vents were discovered at depths ranging from 100 to
2,500 metres. In this area, which is crucial to Norwegian geology, a new
volcanic seabed is formed at a rate of two centimetres a year.