An enigmatic golden orb that sparked alien fears after being discovered by explorers during an expedition in the Gulf of Alaska has now been identified, the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has announced. Almost three years after the remotely operated vehicle Deep Discoverer found the strange entity—measuring a little over four inches (10 cm)—scientists have determined that the 'golden egg' or 'golden orb' is actually a relic of a deep-sea anemone.
The Discovery and Initial Speculation
Found over two miles (3.25 km) underwater in the Gulf of Alaska, the golden, mound-shaped object had a hole in it and was attached to a rock. Its unusual appearance led to widespread speculation, with some wondering if something had crawled inside or escaped from it. The at-sea team collected the 'egg' using a suction sampler and sent it to the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History (NMNH) for further analysis.
Scientific Investigation
While it is common for scientists to encounter organisms in the deep ocean that they do not immediately recognize, this particular mystery took years to unravel. Through morphological, genetic, and bioinformatic analyses, researchers discovered that the 'egg' was actually the remnant of dead cells that formed at the base of a giant deep-sea anemone, Relicanthus daphneae. Specifically, the 'egg' was the part of the anemone that attached to the rock substrate.
Allen Collins, Ph.D., a zoologist and director of NOAA Fisheries' National Systematics Laboratory, located within the Smithsonian NMNH, explained the process: 'We work on hundreds of different samples and I suspected that our routine processes would clarify the mystery. But this turned into a special case that required focused efforts and expertise of several different individuals. This was a complex mystery that required morphological, genetic, deep-sea and bioinformatics expertise to solve.'
Conclusion
The identification of the golden orb as an anemone remnant puts to rest the alien theories that surrounded it. The deep ocean continues to yield fascinating discoveries, reminding us of the complexity and diversity of life beneath the waves.
