Bathymetric map of an underwater methane seep (green vertical line) on Vailulu?™u Seamount, an underwater mountain in the Pacific Ocean, created using multibeam sonar. Methane seeps are plumes of methane gas emerging from underwater fissures in the Earths crust. They are an important source of carbon and energy for deep sea ecosystems. The colour scale indicates depth: red/yellow indicates shallower areas and purple/blue the deeper ones. This map was created using sonar data collected by the Okeanos Explorer and processed by NOAAs Office of Ocean Exploration and Research (OER).