Scientists Have Pinpointed the Source of Humming in the Ocean

BEACON TRANSCRIPT – The Ocean still holds many secrets and dark mysteries, waiting to be solved. To that extent, it is of little wonder why the scientists have focused their attention toward uncovering what lies beneath than to what lies beyond the stars. Recently, scientists have pinpointed the source of humming in the ocean with the use of underwater microphones.

The sound itself is not a novelty. In fact, the scientists discovered this strange noise a couple of years ago. Back then they didn’t know what to make of it, meaning that they did understand if the strange, humming-like sound was produced by a marine creature or the Ocean.

But, over the years, with the use of underwater microphones, a team of marine researchers managed to identify what caused the mysterious and fleeting noise. According to the team in charge of the project, the humming-like noise could only be heard in certain moments of the day.

Strangely enough, the sound had and has an intensity of over 300 Hertz, well over the sound intensity produced by marine mammals such as whales. The team also ruled out background noise. Based on their finding, the humming coming from beneath had more than a few decibels over the normal background noise. They’ve also noted that the strange hum was constant and had sudden variances depending on the times of the day.

In order to discover the source of this strange humming, the scientists decided to pay more attention to the mesopelagic zone, dark patch situated at depths between 660 and 3.300. Moreover, the team was aware that this dark zone is inhabited by millions of marine species. During the night, these organisms make their way towards the surface in order to feed.

Simone Baumann-Pickering, the co-author of the study declared that noise detected by the underwater mikes, resembled a humming or a buzzing, and was usually heard at dawn. Furthermore, the strange buzzing sound would go on for one or two hours before the Ocean before the deep blue silence could instill.

According to the scientist and his team, the buzzing noise is produced by the up and down movement of a species of bony fish right after the dusk. When asked about the significance of this noise, the scientist declared that this is probably the fish’s way of saying: “Dinner is ready. Come and get it!”. Or maybe they’re just passing gas after a hefty meal.

Whatever the case maybe, the scientists are still left with a big question mark: what species of fish can produce this low hum? The scientists have pinpointed the source of humming in the ocean, but there are still a couple of unanswered questions.

Photo credits:www.wikipedia.org