A recent new research direction is studying the mantle section exposed in the inner wall of the Challenger Deep forearc in the Mariana Trench. In November 2024, I was part of an NSF-funded research cruise aboard the R/V Thomas G. Thompson, where we used the ROV JASON to map and sample mantle and crust at 6500 m below sea level within the trench.
Work on the recovered samples (peridotite, gabbro, breccia, basalt) is ongoing.
Check out our SIO “Dispatches” article here on the expedition.