The silent landscape : the scientific voyage of HMS Challenger

THE OCEANS MAKE UP more than two-thirds of the Earth's surface. But they are as mysterious for what they conceal as they are familiar for their ubiquity. Deep below the gentle swell of the waves lies an alien world that even today we have only begun to explore. The quest to know more about this secret domain began in earnest in 1872 when HMS Challenger set sail from Portsmouth, England, to map and sample the ocean floor. Sailing three and half years and 69,000 nautical miles, the story of the Challenger is the stuff of legend. Scientists and crew alike braved the stifling heat of the tropics for months on end only to suffer the stupefying cold of the Antarctic, enduring danger on the high seas, and risking their very lives in the pursuit of knowledge. As the first sea voyage devoted exclusively to science, the Challenger expedition is perhaps the greatest oceanographic mission of all time, surpassing even Charles Darwin's celebrated passage aboard the Beagle. Indeed, among the more important objectives set before the crew of Challenger was the mandate to gather the evidence necessary to prove or refute Darwin's daring new theory of evolution. Put simply, many saw the Challenger expedition as the ultimate battle between God and science. The undertaking was nothing short of a roaring success. Challenger dredged up hundreds of samples from the seafloor and mapped enormous areas of undersea terrain. Most startling of all, though, was the revelation that the ocean was much more than a barren graveyard that mutely reflected Earth's past--it was not a silent landscape after all. Instead, they found a gloriously complex ecosystem teeming with life, an ecological and geological treasure trove we could scarcely imagine from our landlocked perspective. Relying on official documentation and the logs and journals of the ship's scientific staff, her officers, and crew, The Silent Landscape recounts the story of an extraordinary voyage. But neither science nor the seas remain static through the years -- and this book is more than a vivid historical yarn. In the 125 years since the Challenger explored the great oceans of the world, we have learned much more about the hidden mysteries of the deep. So the author, an earth scientist and marine geologist, also brings a 21st century perspective to bear on Challenger's research and discoveries, illuminating the science of that 19th century voyage with the most current oceanographic information available to us. As Challenger sails from the endangered coral reefs of the Caribbean to the trackless depths beneath the western Pacific, The Silent Landscape takes us on an epic journey across time In 1872 HMS Challenger set sail from Portsmouth, England, to map and sample the ocean floor. This marked the birth of modern oceanography. By retracing Challengerâ€TMs extraordinary voyage, we view our underwater landscape anew â€'focusing on what 21st century science is now able to add to this incredible story. The oceans make up more than two thirds of the Earthâ€TMs surface. But they are as mysterious for what they conceal beneath their surfaces as they are familiar for their ubiquity. Deep below the susurrus swell of waves lies an alien world that we have only begun to explore. The quest to know more about this secret domain began in earnest in the late 1800s. In 1859, Charles Darwinâ€TMs book On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection set the scientific world abuzz with its radical theory of evolution, and sparked a feverish desire to know more about the workings of nature. Scientists became increasingly convinced that the ocean floor could provide proof â€'or refutation â€'of Darwinâ€TMs theory of natural selection. They believed that the ocean floor was a haven for life that had long been extinct on land and that obscure fossil evidence culled from the depths could provide us with information on species that no longer existed topside. So an expedition was specifically designed and undertaken to investigate the natural history and geology of the ocean floor. With its emphasis on locating and retrieving fossil records that would test the new theory of evolution, Challengerâ€TMs voyage was nothing less than a mission to choose between God and science. Sailing three and half years and 69,000 nautical miles through burning tropical heat waves and stupefyingly cold Antarctic seas, and suffering further privations of hunger, storms, and sometimes crushing boredom between data-collecting surveys, Challenger dredged up thousands of samples from the sea floor and mapped enormous areas of undersea terrain. The final result was nothing short of a roaring success. So extensive were their findings that it was to take the scientists 19 years to completely examine and report on all their data. The final report, published in 1895, ran to fifty volumes. Most startling of all was the revelation that the ocean was not a silent landscape that serenely reflected Earthâ€TMs past â€'it was a gloriously vibrant ecosystem teeming with a variety and multitude of life on a scale we could scarcely imagine from our landlocked perspective. Relying on the official documentation, logs, and journals of the shipâ€TMs company, The Silent Landscape recounts the tale of an extraordinary voyage brought to life by 21st-century science. From the endangered coral reefs of the Caribbean to the trackless depths beneath the western Pacific, The Silent Landscape takes us on an epic journey across time. Annotation The oceans make up more than two-thirds of the Earth's surface. But they are as mysterious for what they conceal beneath their surfaces as they are familiar for their ubiquity. Deep below the familiar swell of waves lies an alien world that we have only begun to explore. The quest to know more about this secret domain began in earnest in the late 1800s. In 1859, Charles Darwin's book "Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection set the scientific world abuzz with its theories on evolution. Scientists became increasingly convinced that the ocean floor could provide proof--or refutation--of Darwin's theory of natural selection. They believed that the deep sea was a haven for life that had long been extinct on land and that obscure fossil evidence culled from the depths could provide us with information on species that no longer existed topside. With its emphasis on locating and retrieving fossil records, that would test the new theory of evolution, "Challenger's voyage was nothing less than a mission to choose between God and science. Sailing three and a half years and 69,000 nautical miles through tropical heat waves and the stupefying cold of the Antarctic seas, the men of "Challenger suffered storms, privations of hunger, and crushing boredom of deep-sea dredging. Yet by the end of the expedition, "Challenger gathered thousands of samples from the ocean bed and mapped enormous areas of undersea terrain. The final result was a roaring success. Most startling of all was the revelation that the ocean was not a silent landscape that serenely reflected Earth's past--it was a gloriously vibrant ecosystem teeming with life characterized by variety and multitude on a scale we couldscarcely imagine from our landlocked perspective. Relying on the official documentation, logs, and journals of the ship's company, "The Silent Landscape recounts the tale of an extraordinary voyage brought to life by 21st-century s Sailing three-and-a-half years and 69,000 nautical miles, the story of Challenger is the stuff of legend. Scientists and crew alike braved the stifling heat of the tropics for months on end only to suffer the stupefying cold of the Antarctic, enduring danger on the high seas, and risking their very lives in the pursuit of knowledge. As the first sea voyage devoted exclusively to science, the Challenger expedition is perhaps the greatest oceanographic mission of all time, surpassing even Charles Darwin's celebrated passage aboard HMS Beagle. Indeed, among the more important objectives set before the crew of Challenger was the mandate to gather the evidence necessary to prove or refute Darwin's daring new theory of evolution. Put simply, many saw the Challenger expedition as the ultimate battle between God and science.

The undertaking was nothing short of a roaring success. Challenger dredged up hundreds of samples from the seafloor and mapped enormous areas of undersea terrain. Most startling of all, though, was the revelation that the ocean was much more than a barren graveyard that mutely reflected Earth's past - it was not a silent landscape after all. Instead, these intrepid explorers found a gloriously complex ecosystem teeming with life, an ecological and geological treasure trove that could scarcely be imagined from a landlocked perspective.

FrontMatter......Page 1 Contents......Page 7 Frontispiece (The Route of HMS Challenger)......Page 10 Prologue......Page 11 Threshold of the Deep......Page 15 The Desert Under the Sea......Page 39 The Restless Earth......Page 59 Kingdoms of Mud and Lime......Page 75 Climate Triggers and Bermudan Secrets......Page 89 Kelp and Cold Light......Page 114 The Library of Time......Page 141 The Grim Latitudes......Page 161 The Lost World......Page 174 The Echoes of Evolution......Page 190 The Groaning Planet......Page 209 Dreams of Big Science......Page 236 Epilogue......Page 263 Acknowledgments......Page 269 Further Reading......Page 271 Index......Page 275 "The undertaking was nothing short of a roaring success. Challenger dredged up hundreds of samples from the seafloor and mapped enormous areas of undersea terrain. Most startling of all, though, was the revelation that the ocean was much more than a barren graveyard that mutely reflected Earth's past - it was not a silent landscape after all. Instead, these intrepid explorers found a gloriously complex ecosystem teeming with life, an ecological and geological treasure trove that could scarcely be imagined from a landlocked perspective."--Jacket Annotation In 1872, the HMS set out on a three-and-a- half year mission that was responsible, according to Corfield (Oxford U., UK), for laying the foundations of oceanography and marine geology. He narrates the voyage, describing both the discoveries of the crew and the current scientific knowledge about their finds. Annotation (c)2003 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com) Tells the story of the scientific voyage of the HMS Challenger, which set out in 1872 from Portsmouth, England, to map and sample the ocean floor Richard Corfield. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 257-259) And Index.