In the year 2000, an expedition of the National Science Foundation discovered by chance a unique geological and biological phenomenon in the Atlantic Ocean: the Lost City Hydrothermal Field. It lies at a depth of around 750 to 900 metres. Surrounded by hot volcanic springs, so-called white smokers, a unique living community of invertebrate animals and bacteria has formed, which is based on chemical energy instead of sunlight. Scientists presume that terrestrial life originated under these conditions.