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The worlds oceans have an average depth of around 3‚682 meters (12‚080 feet)‚ yet there is one point where the seafloor plunges to around three times this profundity. Known as the Challenger Deep‚ the deepest spot in the ocean lies within the famous Mariana Trench in the western Pacific‚ and has only ever been visited by a handful of people.Named after the legendary Challenger Expedition that first sounded the depths of the trench in 1875‚ the Challenger Deep lies some 200 nautical miles (230 miles; 370 kilometers) southwest of Guam‚ towards the southern end of the Mariana Trench. The murky abyss is divided into three depressions known as the eastern‚ central‚ and western basins‚ with a 2021 study confirming that the deepest point lies within the eastern basin‚ at a depth of 10‚935 meters (35‚876 feet).The spot is so deep that if Mount Everest were placed there‚ its summit would still lie around 2‚084 meters (6‚842 feet) beneath the waves. Despite its incredible depth‚ however‚ the Challenger Deep was reached byoceanographer Jacques Piccard and Navy Lt. Don Walsh‚ who made it to the bottom of the sea in a US Navy submersible in 1960.More than six decades later‚ filmmaker and explorer James Cameron became the second visitor to the Challenger Deep and the first solo traveler to arrive in 2012. Diving aboard a submarine he designed himself‚ Cameron took two hours and 36 minutes to descend to the bottom of the chasm‚ before returning to the surface in about 70 minutes.Like the rest of the Mariana Trench‚ the Challenger Deep was formed by a process known as subduction‚ whereby the Pacific Plate slid beneath the smaller Mariana Plate. This sent the seafloor plummeting towards the so-called hadal zone‚ which begins at a depth of 3.7 miles(19‚536 feet) and takes its name from Hades‚ the mythical Greek underworld.Yet while Hades may be associated with death‚ the Challenger Deep is surprisingly teeming with life. For instance‚ during Camerons visit‚ he captured footage of strange‚ translucent sea cucumbers that had not been seen anywhere else in the ocean.As exciting as that sounds‚ subsequent visits to the Deep revealed that the life forms at the bottom of the ocean may already be affected bypollution. Unbelievably‚ one expedition even found abeer bottle lying on the seafloor‚ highlighting the need to do a better job of protecting the ocean‚ and indeed the rest of the planet.All explainer articles are confirmed byfact checkersto be correct attime of publishing. Text‚ images‚ and links may be edited‚ removed‚ or added to at a later date to keep information current.

In a major step towards truly sustainable fashion‚ researchers have genetically modified bacteria to produce a vegan‚ plastic-free leather alternative that can dye itself black. Demonstrating the potential of their new method‚ the study authors were able to grow a whole shoe (minus the sole) from their tailored microbes in just two weeks.Like many other materials used in the production of clothes‚ leather comes with an environmental toll‚ and researchers are on the hunt for more sustainable alternatives. Among the most promising substances is bacterial cellulose‚ which is produced by certain bacteria of the genus Komagataeibacter.These microorganisms secrete linear chains of glucose that self-assemble into a durable mesh of fibers known as a pellicle. As well as making excellent textiles‚ pellicles can be rapidly produced from waste feedstocks like rotten fruit and therefore come with a very low environmental footprint.Researchers grew this shoe from bacteria. Image credit: Tom Ellis/Marcus Walker/Imperial College LondonHowever‚ while the idea of using bacterial cellulose as a substitute for leather is nothing new‚ scientists had until now struggled to come up with an environmentally friendly method of adding color to these materials. Indeed‚ synthetic chemical dyeing is among the most polluting processes in fashion‚ with the black pigments that are used to color leather being among the worst offenders.To get around this issue‚ the researchers genetically modified a type ofKomagataeibacter to produce the enzyme tyrosinase‚ which catalyzes the formation of the black pigment eumelanin. Thanks to its low water solubility‚ eumelanin is an excellent candidate for a textile dye as it is unlikely to run when washed.Over the course of 14 days‚ the team grew bacterial cellulose in a shoe-shaped mold using their altered microbes‚ before gentle shaking stimulated the production of eumelanin‚ thus dying the material black from within. They also manufactured a black wallet by cutting and stitching pellicle sheets secreted by the modified bacteria.Inventing a new‚ faster way to produce sustainable‚ self-dyed leather alternatives is a major achievement for synthetic biology and sustainable fashion‚ said study authorProfessor Tom Ellis in a statement. Bacterial cellulose is inherently vegan‚ and its growth requires a tiny fraction of the carbon emissions‚ water‚ land use and time of farming cows for leather‚ he adds.";Unlike plastic-based leather alternatives‚ bacterial cellulose can also be made without petrochemicals‚ and will biodegrade safely and non-toxically in the environment‚ says Ellis.Taking things a step further‚ the researchers demonstrated that the bacteria could be stimulated to produce pigments in response to blue light. This enabled them to add shapes and logos to pellicles just by shining light on the desired patterns.Moving forward‚ the team says it may now be possible to engineer bacteria to produce other colors in a similar fashion‚ with pigments such as indigo having already been synthesized by certain strains ofE. coli.We look forward to working with the fashion industry to make the clothes we wear greener throughout the whole production line‚ says Ellis.The study has been published in the journal Nature Biotechnology.