...............Underwater Volcanoes
                                              29.00 LT   44.00 LN
      
    
    The Atlantic is widening at a rate of an inch per year, about
six feet in an average lifetime.  Rifts along the Mid-Atlantic
Ridge are constantly spewing lava and ash, creating new land 
masses and changing the face of the ocean floor.  These active 
rifts, known as hydrothermal vents, or smokers, contain hydrogen
sulfide that feeds bacteria.  The bacteria, in turn, are the basic
food source for giant tube worms and other life that thrive near 
the vents.
    Using Manta, you can observe a smoker and the life around it
first hand, taking pictures and using the robotic arm to probe the
temperature of the molten ash.


