Robot Searching for the Endurance Wreck Uncovers Bizarre Underwater Structures
The icy depths of the Weddell Sea have long concealed many Antarctic mysteries. In 2019, an expedition set out to find the legendary wreck of Ernest Shackleton’s ship, the Endurance, which sank in 1915.
Though the crew did not immediately locate the ship, their underwater robot, nicknamed “Lassie,” captured astonishing footage of mysterious formations scattered across the seabed—formations that have puzzled scientists for years.
Discovery of Unusual Seabed Structures
Six years later, researchers revealed the true nature of these strange formations. A study published in Frontiers in Marine Science (R.B. Connelly et al., 2025) reported that over a thousand circular depressions cover this remote seabed area.
Each pit has a notably clean interior, composed of sand and almost completely free of plankton debris that blankets the surrounding sediments. This creates a strikingly geometric underwater landscape, unlike typical Antarctic seafloors.
Varied and Mysterious Formations
The initial images taken by “Lassie” reveal a diverse array of crevices:
- Some pits appear as solitary depressions.
- Others curve gently in lines.
- Several cluster densely together.
The sharp contrast between the pristine pits and the surrounding vegetative debris immediately captured the attention of marine biologists.
"The seabed in this remote region is dotted with over a thousand circular depressions. Each of these pits appears unusually clean, with sandy interiors free of plankton debris that covers the surrounding sediments." – R.B. Connelly et al., 2025
These unusual structures provide new insights into the Antarctic marine environment and challenge previous conceptions of the seafloor’s natural patterns.
Author's summary: The search for Shackleton’s Endurance led to the discovery of over a thousand uniquely shaped, debris-free circular pits on the Antarctic seabed, revealing an unexpected geometric underwater pattern.