Passage:
For decades, oceanographers assumed the deep ocean floor was a biological desert, devoid of light and thus of life. This belief persisted until geophysicists noticed anomalous temperature spikes in the deep water of the Galapagos Rift. Seeking to map these thermal variations, researchers first deployed unmanned deep-tow camera sleds. The resulting photographs revealed unexpected clusters of giant clam shells littering the basaltic seabed, a finding that puzzled biologists who could not conceive of an energy source that could sustain them. Intrigued by these photographs, a team of scientists boarded the submersible Alvin to inspect the site firsthand. Descending into the abyss, they witnessed shimmering, superheated water billowing from chimney-like mineral structures. Surrounding these vents was a thriving, alien ecosystem of tubeworms and crabs. Only after collecting samples of the vent water did microbiologists identify the chemosynthetic bacteria that utilized hydrogen sulfide as an energy source, finally resolving how such a community could flourish in complete darkness.
Based on the passage, in what chronological order did these events occur, from earliest to latest?
- 1Oceanographers assuming the deep ocean floor was a biological desert.
- 2Geophysicists detecting unusual temperature patterns in the Galapagos Rift.
- 3Camera sleds capturing images of clam shells on the ocean floor.
- 4Researchers inside the submersible Alvin directly observing hydrothermal chimneys.
- 5Microbiologists identifying bacteria that convert chemical energy into food.