Scientists have discovered a real “dead pond” at the bottom of the Red Sea – killing almost all creatures that swim in it.

The pool – which is 107,00 square feet, or just over the size of an average Manhattan block – was Discovered by University of Miami researchers A remotely operated underwater vehicle during an expedition to the northern enclave of the sea in 2020.

Located 1.1 miles below the ocean’s surface, the pool is oxygen-free and filled with brine – a highly concentrated brine solution that proves deadly.

“Any animal that gets drenched in brine is instantly shocked or killed,” said lead researcher Sam Purkis. Live Sciencewith the publication describing the hypersaline ponds as “among the most extreme environments on Earth”.

“It appears that fish, shrimp, and eels use the saltwater for fishing,” Burkes continued, claiming that “predators” lurk near the deadly pond to “feed on the unlucky creatures” that inadvertently swim in it.

This isn’t the first salt pond discovered by scientists – oceanographers have previously discovered “a few dozen” killer ponds in the Red Sea, the Mediterranean and the Gulf of Mexico over the past 30 years.

However, this discovery stunned scientists, because the pool is located close to the ground.

Previously, the nearest salt basin located in the Red Sea was found at least 15.5 miles from shore. However, this pool is found only 1.25 miles from the coast of Egypt.

According to researchers, the Red Sea contains the largest known number of saltwater basins. It is believed to have formed from the dissolution of pockets of precipitated minerals up to 23 million years ago.

In 2015, marine biologists were Thrilled to discover the salt water pool More than half a mile below the surface of the Gulf of Mexico.

The pool has been dubbed the “hot tub saltwater machine” because it has barely been altered in the tens of millions of years since its inception.