"Journey into Midnight" was two-week research cruise on R/V Point Sur that explored biodiversity, vision, biolumines-cence, and biophotonics in the northeast Gulf of Mexico. The science crew consisted of six co-PIs and their labs, plus a teacher-at-sea and a professional photographer. Working mostly at depths of 1,000-2,000 m, we completed 12 ROV dives, six Medusa (a drifting stealth camera system) deployments that collected 160 hours of video, and 15 midwater trawls. Significantly, we captured footage of a juvenile specimen of the giant squid Architeuthis dux (Figure 1). The second in situ footage of this squid ever and the first in US waters, it both generated intense nationaland international media coverage and demonstrated the value of stealth technology for deep-sea research. In addition, we discovered and measured what may be the blackest natural surface known-the skin of the deep-sea anglerfish Oneirodes. This skin, which is currently being assessed using electron microscopy and complex optical modeling methods, is as black as the blackest known technological substances and may provide insight into how to design these important materials. We also filmed one of the most impressive bioluminescent displays known, that of thethreadfin dragonfish Echiostoma barbatum, showing that it emits light even from the tips of its fin rays.
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