Table of Contents

• Coverage
• Dataset Description
  • Methods & Sampling
  • Data Processing Description
• Data Files
• Supplemental Files
• Parameters
• Instruments
• Deployments
• Project Information
• Funding

Viable cell counts on the bacteria in the seawater collected in the Niskin bottles during Leggo drops 1 and 3.

This data set is associated with PI Douglas Bartlett (NSF OCE-1536776) and Schmidt Ocean Institute R/V Falkor cruise FK141215. The cruise occurred December 15-21, 2014 in the Challenger Deep within the territorial waters of the Federated States of Micronesia. During this cruise the Leggo lander was deployed multiple times and drops 1 and 3 recovered seawater samples that were analyzed. Additional details can be found at: https://schmidtocean.org/cruise/expanding-mariana-trench-perspectives/ and https://scripps.ucsd.edu/labs/dbartlett/contact/challenger-deep-cruise-2014/

Leggo Lander Drop 1:
Time (in Guam) deployed/recovered: December 16, 9:00/19:26.
Position at deployment: 11° 21.9836 N 142° 25.9533 E, middle section of the Challenger Deep.
Greatest depth of dive: approximately ~10,900 m.
In situ temperature on seafloor: 2.6°C.
Notes: This drop recovered seawater samples from about a meter off the seafloor. This included a 3 L Niskin bottle of seawater and ~ 150 mls of seawater collected in a pressure-retaining seawater sampler. The PRS sampler held more than 81% of the in situ pressure. 

Leggo Lander Drop 3:
Time (in Guam) deployed/recovered December 18/19, 13:14/10:14.
Position at deployment 11° 22.1122 N 142° 35.2510 E, eastern section of the Challenger Deep.
Greatest depth of dive: 11,168 m (uncorrected) correct depth = 10,929 m.
Notes: This drop utilized the lander equipped with a camera system and a 30 liter Niskin bottle. The Niskin bottle and a trap in front of the camera were baited with jack mackerel. The camera obtained high definition video clips and still images of amphipods feeding on the bait. 23 amphipods were collected within the Niskin bottle. The temperature within the Niskin water measured back on ship was 10.8°C.

Viable cell counts:
This dataset includes viable cell counts on the bacteria in the seawater collected in the Niskin bottles during Leggo drop 1 and 3. Seawater dilutions were plated onto Marine 2216 plates and incubated at 4 degrees C. Note: Leggo1 is the first drop of the Leggo Lander and the values reflect the viable cell counts from its 2 liter Niskin bottle. Leggo3 is the third drop of the Leggo Lander, with its camera payload and associated jack mackerel baited 30 liter Niskin bottle. Amphipods were collected in the Niskin bottle.

Colony Identification:
Data from the identification of bacteria cultured from the Leggo drop 1 and 3 Niskin bottles are available as a supplemental file (.txt). These identifications were performed using standard methods associated with PCR amplification of the 16S rRNA gene followed by dideoxy sequencing at Retrogen Inc.  

BCO-DMO Processing:
-modified parameter names to conform with BCO-DMO naming conventions;
-replaced spaces with underscores;
-replaced '-' with 'nd' (no data);
-added dates, times, locations from metadata form.

Award Abstract from NSF:
The deepest portion of the ocean is present in ocean trenches, whose steep walls descend from approximately 4 miles down to depths that in some cases are close to 7 miles below the seawater surface. At these locations Earth's crust is recycled. Perhaps not surprisingly given their remoteness, deep ocean trenches are the least understood habitats in the ocean. The researchers participating in this project are working to characterize the microbes present in two of the deepest trenches present on Earth, both in the Pacific Ocean, the Kermadec Trench located north of New Zealand, and the Mariana Trench, located east and south of the island of Guam. Most of the Mariana Trench is located within the United States Mariana Trench Marine National Monument. Relatively little is known about the diversity and adaptations of the microorganisms in deep ocean trenches. An unknown fraction of the microbes present have descended from shallow waters above and are unlikely to participate in any nutrient cycles in the deep sea. Others are adapted to near freezing temperatures and up to pressures greater than 10e7 kilograms per square meter (16,000 pounds per square inch). These latter microbes perform important roles recycling organic matter. But who are they? This project is contributing to the training of diverse undergraduate and graduate students participating in research, additional undergraduate students learning about microbes inhabiting extreme environments in a web-based class, and additional graduate students and postdoctoral scientists participating in an advanced training course being offered in Antarctica.

Experiments being performed include direct counts of prokaryotes and viruses in seawater and sediments, analyses of the abundance and phylogenetic breadth of culturable heterotrophic bacteria at a range of pressures, measurements of bacterial community species diversity and richness both within and across seawater and sediment samples, as well as within and across the two trench systems, measurements of microbial activity as a function of pressure and the identification of high pressure-active cells. The data generated from these analyses are being integrated into the results of additional chemical, geological and biological measurements performed by others as a part of the National Science Foundation funded Hadal Ecosystems Studies Project. Two of the working hypotheses are that prokaryote numbers and diversity are generally positively correlated with surface productivity and proximity to the trench axis and that bacterial taxa exist which are endemic to specific trenches, present in multiple trenches and more widely distributed in deep-sea environments.