Introducing, Dining in the Deep—a multi-part series showcasing the eating habits of some of our favorite deep-sea gourmets. ⁠🍴 ⁠ This week we're featuring the deep-sea food maven, Aegina sp. No, that's not the large red comb jelly you see in this video, it's the tiny pulsing jellyfish that's ravenously consuming its much larger prey. Jellies in the genus Aegina are different from many other jellyfish because they typically have only four tentacles extending from the bell. Although they are observed frequently, we actually know little about this group of deep-sea jellies. Our researchers often find these tiny jellies feasting on other (bigger) deep-sea animals like comb jellies and siphonophores. ⁠ ⁠ Stay tuned for more dining delights from the gastronomic wonderland that is the deep sea! ⁠ ⁠ #MBARI #deepsea #ocean #dininginthedeep #underwaterphotography #nature #explore #science #exploremore #wildlife #foodie

AUV mapping in a winter wonderland. ❄️⁠ ⁠ During an expedition to Greenland in 2017, MBARI's research team successfully tested new control technologies that would allow an autonomous underwater vehicle to safely travel parallel to complex vertical terrain (i.e., an iceberg) and map the surface. To do this the engineers outfitted the AUV with obstacle-avoidance sonars, aligned in the horizontal plane, to make sure the vehicle didn’t collide with anything. The vehicle also had a second sonar on it, aligned in the vertical plane, looking out of the left side of the vehicle. This vertical sonar collected mapping data revealing what the target surface looked like. ⁠ ⁠ The mission proved that these AUVs and the technology that they carry are an effective way of exploring extreme environments like icebergs, deep-sea canyons, and possibly even asteroids in space.⁠ Photo by David Caress. ⁠ ⁠ #MBARI⁠ #NASA #technology #techielife #innerspace⁠ #ocean #underwatervehicle #nature #explore #science #exploremore⁠ #icebergs #winterwonderland⁠