Hydrothermal ore deposits of the Snake Pit hydrothermal field (Mid-Atlantic Ridge)

The Snake Pit hydrothermal field is located on the top of a neovolcanic rise on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge at sea depths between 3460 and 3510 m. It was surveyed during several oceanological expeditions, including deep-sea drilling cruises. Additional scientific materials were obtained in 2002 and 2003 during the expedition on board R/V Akademik Mstislav Keldysh with two Mir deep-water manned submersibles. Three eastern hydrothermal mounds (Moose, Beehive, and Fir Tree) are located on the upper part of the eastern slope of the rise over a common fractured pedestal composed of fragments of massive sulfides. The western group of hydrothermal deposits is encountered on the western slope of the axial graben. Within this mature hydrothermal field, which was formed over the past 4000 years, we studied the morphology of the hydrothermal mounds, the chemistry and mineralogy of the hydrothermal deposits, the chemistry of the sulfide minerals, and the isotope composition of the sulfur in them.