News Context: Researchers discovered four gigantic seamounts in the deep sea off the coast of Peru and Chile.
About Seamounts:
- A seamount is an underwater mountain with steep sides rising from the seafloor.
- Most seamounts are remnants of extinct volcanoes and are typically cone shaped.
- Seamounts with large flat summits are called guyots.
- Seamounts are found in every world ocean basin.
- Seamounts function as oases of life or biological hotspots with higher species diversity and biomass on and around it.
- World’s highest seamount is Hawaii’s dormant volcano Mauna Kea.