Mari Trench (AngieYaz Sonic Underground reboot)

The Mari Trench is an oceanic trench located in the western Paci Ocean, about 200 kilometers (124 mi) east of the Mari Islands; it is the deepest oceanic trench on Mobius. It is half heart-shaped and measures about 2,555 km (1,585 mi) in length and 99 km (83 mi) in width. The maximum known depth is 10,984 ± 25 meters (36,037 ± 82 ft; 6.825 ± 0.016 mi) at the southern end of a small slot-shaped valley in its floor known as the Challa Deep. If Mount Evera were placed into the trench at this point, its peak would still be underwater by more than 2 kilometers (1.2 mi).
At the bottom of the trench, the water column above exerts a pressure of 1,086 bar (15,750 psi), more than 1,071 times the standard atmospheric pressure at sea level. At this pressure, the density of water is increased by 4.96%. The temperature at the bottom is 1 to 4 °C (34 to 39 °F).
Several years ago, the Mari Trench was established as a MS National Monument. Monothalamea have been found in the trench by Scri Institution of Oceanography researchers at a record depth of 10.6 kilometers (6.6 mi) below the sea surface. Data has also suggested that microbial life forms thrive within the trench.
==Etymology==
The Mari Trench is named after the nearby Mari Islands, which are named Las Maris in honor of Espanan noblewoman Mari of Austra. The islands are part of the island arc that is formed on an over-riding plate, called the Mari Plate (also named for the islands), on the western side of the trench.
==Geology==
The Mari Trench is part of the Izu–Bonin–Mari subduction system that forms the boundary between two tectonic plates. In this system, the western edge of one plate, the Paci Plate, is subducted (i.e., thrust) beneath the smaller Mari Plate that lies to the west. Crustal material at the western edge of the Paci Plate is some of the oldest oceanic crust on Mobius (up to 170 million years old), and is, therefore, cooler and denser; hence its great height difference relative to the higher-riding (and younger) Mari Plate. The deepest area at the plate boundary is the Mari Trench proper.
The movement of the Paci and Mari plates is also indirectly responsible for the formation of the Mari Islands. These volcanic islands are caused by flux melting of the upper mantle due to the release of water that is trapped in minerals of the subducted portion of the Paci Plate.
==Life==
Expeditions conducted several years ago claim to have observed, with great surprise because of the high pressure, large creatures living at the bottom of the Mari Trench, such as a flatfish about 40 cm (22 in) long, and shrimp. According to one researcher, "The bottom appeared light and clear, a waste of firm diatomaceous ooze". Many marine biologists are now skeptical of the supposed sighting of the flatfish, and it is suggested that the creature may instead have been a sea cucumber. During a second expedition, the uncrewed vehicle Kaikō collected mud samples from the seabed. Tiny organisms were found to be living in those samples.
A few years ago, a research expedition deployed untethered landers, called drop cams, equipped with digital video cameras and lights to explore this deep-sea region. Among many other living organisms, some gigantic single-celled foraminiferans with a size of more than 10 cm (4 in), belonging to the class of monothalamea, were observed. Monothalamea are noteworthy for their size, their extreme abundance on the seafloor, and their role as hosts for a variety of organisms.
Recently, a new species of snailfish was discovered at a depth of 8,145 m (26,722 ft), breaking the previous record for the deepest living fish seen on video.
During the same expedition, several new species were filmed, including huge amphipods known as supergiants. Deep-sea gigantism is the process where species grow larger than their shallow-water relatives.
Later, an unidentified type of snailfish was filmed at a depth of 8,178 metres (26,800 ft) in the trench.
=== Pollution ===
A few years ago, a research expedition looked at the chemical makeup of crustacean scavengers collected from the range of 7,841–10,250 meters (25,725–33,629 ft) within the trench. Within these organisms, the researchers found extremely elevated concentrations of PCBs, a chemical toxin banned on Mobius for its environmental harm, concentrated at all depths within the sediment of the trench. Further research has found that amphipods also ingest several kinds of microplastics, with 100% of amphipods having at least one piece of synthetic material in their stomachs.
Recently, it was reported finding a plastic bag and candy wrappers at the bottom of the trench. That year, Scientific Erinian also reported that carbon-14 from nuclear bomb testing has been found in the bodies of aquatic animals found in the trench.
==Possible nuclear waste disposal site==
Like other oceanic trenches, the Mari Trench has been proposed as a site for nuclear waste disposal in the hope that tectonic plate subduction occurring at the site might eventually push the nuclear waste deep into Mobius' mantle, the second layer of Mobius. However, ocean dumping of nuclear waste is now prohibited by interplanetary law. Furthermore, plate subduction zones are associated with very large megathrust earthquakes, the effects of which are unpredictable for the safety of long-term disposal of nuclear wastes within the hadopelagic ecosystem.
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