US-Russian-Norwegian Investigation of Gas Hydrate and Hydrothermal Activity in Ancient and Recent Plate Boundaries Within the Norwegian-Greenland and Barents Seas

1995年夏天，美国、挪威和俄罗斯在挪威-格陵兰和巴伦支海的联合探险队发现了一个位于古老断裂带的温暖的天然气喷口，该断裂带被称为霍恩松断层，距离该地区已知的现今板块边界很远。 喷口的特点是高热流，包合物，H2S，和一个未知物种的Pogonophore蠕虫。 该奖项是迅速返回现场，详细绘制地图，使用配备侧视声纳和声纳的俄罗斯船只的喷口域的范围。 此外，它还将调查沿着希波维奇海岭最近热液活动的可能地点。 人们认为，对沿着巴伦支海边缘的温暖气体喷口的研究可能会对该地区古代板块边界的热再生程度提供新的认识，北极地区的温暖喷口可能在冰川消退事件中发挥作用，无论是在陆地上的现代环境中（如斯匹次卑尔根群岛）还是在古代冰川地区，如熊岛扇。

During the summer of 1995, a joint US-Norwegian-Russian Expedition in the Norwegian-Greenland and Barents Sea discovered a warm gas vent located on an ancient fracture zone known as the Hornsund Fault, at great distance from known present-day plate boundaries in the region. The vent was characterized by high heat flow, clathrates, H2S, and an unknown species of Pogonophore worm. This award is to return rapidly back to the site, to map in detail, the extent of the vent domain using a Russian vessel equipped with side-looking sonar and ROV. In addition, it is to investigate likely sites along the Knipovich Ridge for recent hydrothermal activity. It is believed that the examination of the warm gas vents along the margin of the Barents Sea may shed new light on the degree of thermal rejuvenation of ancient plate boundaries in the region, and the possible role that warn vents in the Arctic region may play on deglaciation events, either in modern settings on land (such as Spitsbergen) or in ancient glaciated regions, such as the Bear Island Fan.