Why Do We Explore Abyssal Plains? | Nautilus Live

When you think of the deep-sea, what do you imagine? Often our remotely operated vehicle (ROV) exploration takes us to places like seamounts and active underwater volcanoes because of the exciting dynamics of these sites. Yet, by far, the most abundant habitat on the seafloor is the abyssal plain. This unsung habitat is home to complex, slow-cycling processes and plays a key role in the global ocean system. So to help us learn more, every expedition of 2026 visited abyssal plain habitats from the central to western Pacific. But what is the abyssal plain, and how do we study it miles below the ocean surface? What kind of life thrives in this sedimented world? In this video, Dr. Ashton Flinders of the US Geological Survey, and a Watch Lead scientist from the Corps of Exploration answers thes