We call sea deeper than 200 m the “Deep Sea.” Sunlight can hardly reach there and the temperature is around 2-4 ℃. It’s just like being in a refrigerator. This extreme “Deep Sea World” is very close to the lives of people living in Muroto.

The land of Muroto is formed from the layers at the bottom of the deep sea by plate tectonic movements. Therefore, the geological record of the deep sea is engraved under the ground of Muroto. Everywhere, you can find and touch the fossils and traces of animals that lived in extreme environments, and traces of patterns on the sea bottom made by the flow of water.

The sea on the east side becomes suddenly deep from about 2-3 km off the coast. This is because there is a steep cliff, with a depth of 1000 m, on the east side of the cape. Deep seawater travels with the ocean current, reaches the cliff and finally upwells towards the sea surface. In the eastern region of Muroto there are several set net-fishing spots, and sometimes valuable deep sea creatures, rarely witnessed worldwide, come up with the net.

As you can see, Muroto is a place that’s all about the deep sea, whether you’re on land or in the ocean. So this year, “Muroto UNESCO Global Geopark Deep Sea Expo 2016” is being held to make it possible to fully enjoy the deep sea of Muroto. At Muroto Global Geopark Center, there are exhibitions of the deep sea and deep-sea creatures, such as videos and real specimens. The main exhibition is a mock-up of a huge deep-sea shark, known as the "mega-mouth shark." A group of students at Muroto High School joined together to make this mock-up. You will be overwhelmed by the size of it for sure. You can also encounter deep-sea creatures at “Aqua Farm,” the deep seawater intake facility. At “Sea-rest Muroto,” a hot bath relaxation facility using deep seawater, you can experience feeling like a deep-sea fish. For lunch, you can enjoy “Muroto Kinme Don,” Muroto’s premier dish, which is made with kinme, or alfonsino—a deep-sea fish.

high-school student working together

Marine isopod(Bathynomus doederleini)

trace fossil