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Written in Stone

May 30, 2012

After cutting samples of basalt rock dredged from the Mid-Atlantic Ridge for scientific analyses, geochemist Cedric Hamelin from the University of Bergen in Norway used some leftovers to create an homage to the research vessel Knorr. Hamelin is on board Knorr until June 11 with researchers from WHOI and Harvard University. They are making seafloor maps and collecting samples to learn more about the differences in the type and chemical compositions of undersea rocks. This helps reveal how ocean crust forms and moves through faulting, spreading, and undersea earthquakes.(Photo courtesy of Tom Bolmer, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)