Do We Really Know Less about the Deep Sea Than the Moon or Mars?

image via New Scientist

May 9, 2025, 2:00 PM

• •Humans have only directly observed less than 0.001 percent of the global seafloor.
• •Direct observation is different from mapping and sampling, which contribute to a full understanding of an environment.
• •While we have detailed maps of the moon and Mars, understanding the ocean floor involves complexities like composition and processes.
• •Advancements in technology offer potential for better and more comprehensive deep-sea exploration.

A recent study revealed that humans have directly observed less than 0.001 percent of the global deep seafloor, a figure that underscores our limited visual knowledge of this vast environment. This direct observation, distinct from mapping and sampling, highlights the need for comprehensive exploration to fully understand the ocean's complexities, including composition and processes. While we have detailed maps of celestial bodies like the moon and Mars, the ocean floor's characteristics, and the lack of visual observation, creates a different challenge. The abysmally low figure for our visual knowledge of the abyss is cause for excitement, with burgeoning technological advances to make submarine exploration better, cheaper and safer, it is an invitation to begin a more comprehensive look at the global deep seafloor.

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