Death pool in Red Sea: If the water swallows the fish? Mystery unravelled

Mumbai:  A small fish is swallowed by a big fish and a shark swallows a big fish, but if the water swallows the fish the aquatic life there, including fish? Although it seems strange, scientists have recently confirmed that this is true. The mystery behind this has been revealed.

Scientists have identified a rare 'death pool' in the Gulf of Aqaba, north of the Red Sea, between Egypt and Saudi Arabia. Several scientists from the University of Miami discovered it at a depth of 1,770 metres while observing the ocean floor using a remotely operated underwater vehicle. The lake is about 100 feet long. Technically known as a brine pool, the salinity of this water is extremely high and as a result, there is no oxygen in it.

Therefore, any other aquatic life, including fish, will die as soon as they enter the lagoon, said Professor Sam Purkis, who led the team of scientists. But, strangely, even in such adverse conditions, microorganisms are living in this lagoon... they are feeding on aquatic organisms that come into this water and die.

He said that the latest development will contribute to future research on how the oceans were formed on Earth millions of years ago. It is believed that it is difficult to predict the existence of life on other planets without understanding what are the limits of the survival of life on Earth. The details of this research have been published in the famous journal 'Nature'.