Scientists are baffled by the discovery of a “golden egg” that was found while exploring the bottom of the ocean. The perplexing object was gahtered 250 miles off the coast of Alaska, by marine biologists onboard a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) boat. These researchers were using special equipment to look at an extinct underwater volcano in the area.
When they made the strange discovery of the golden egg-shaped object, they used a remotely operated vehicle to nudge it. Only to discover the egg was soft with a texture that somewhat resembles skin. The vehicle gently sucked up the egg so the team could study it further.
When they posted the discovery of social media the reserchers were transparent about not knowing what it is. Revealing that they had taken to calling it the “golden orb.” Their best theory at this point is that it’s “likely an egg casing” of some kind.
The pictures the team shared show a golden sponge-like blob with a hole in it. The hole is assumed to be the result of “something [that] tried to get in or get out,” according to one researcher.
“Isn’t the deep sea so delightfully strange?” NOAA Ocean Exploration’s Sam Candio, expedition coordinator for the voyage that found the golden egg, said. “While we were able to collect the ‘golden orb’ and bring it onto the ship, we still are not able to identify it beyond the fact that it is biological in origin. We likely won’t learn more until we are able to get it into a laboratory setting where we can continue to pull from the collective expertise of the scientific community with more sophisticated tools than we are able to maintain on the ship. While somewhat humbling to be stumped by this finding, it serves as a reminder of how little we know about our own planet and how much is left to learn and appreciate about our ocean.”
Even though the object was found on August 30th, tests are still being run to identify it. Currently, researchers are conducting a DNA analysis along with other tests to figure out what the shiny orb is.
We’ll keep you posted on updates about this deep water anomaly as they become available. But we are pretty sure most sci-fi and horror fans are screaming “Put it back!”
