Searching for seeps: As marine organisms die, they sink to the seafloor, where they are buried in the sediment — decomposing and enabling the slow buildup of methane. Eventually, the gas escapes upward through cracks and fissures, forming methane seeps. Tiny single-celled organisms, chemosynthetic microbes, convert methane into energy to grow, forming carbonate rocks. These seeps are known to be essential habitats, and the microbes consuming methane ensure this greenhouse gas remains locked in t