Can we safely bring deep-sea organisms to the surface and keep them alive?

Certain species, such as the giant isopods and giant Japanese spider crabs have been kept in aquaria in the past but the number of animals we can maintain long-term is quite small. The Monterey Bay Aquarium’s new Into the Deep exhibition has succeeded in keeping animals never before put on public display, some are even new to science. Not only that, but they have even had some success in getting them to reproduce! Figuring out what conditions these animals need and observing them over long periods will allow us to learn huge amounts about animals we usually only get a glimpse of. We talk with aquarists Ellen Umeda and Michelle Kaiser and life-support engineer Brian Maurer about the years of work that went into keeping these animals and giving the public a very personal deep-sea experience.

In the rest of the episode, Alan is back in the UK and we get to record in ‘the very quiet room’. We discuss data sharing and the complexities of charging for data that may otherwise not be taken, visiting the Explorers Club in New York and language barriers within science.

Thom also calls Alan’s bluff and present him with a lovely Deep-Sea Podcast apron which he then proceeds to wear in Hell’s Kitchen in New York.

We hear from a listener about how the podcast helped them through a difficult time and answer a listener question about the danger of entanglement for undersea vehicles. If you’d like to record a question or comment please do and send it to the email below. We would love to include you on the show.