Aliens of the Deep — A Letter to Educators from Director James Cameron

Dear Educator,

All my life, I have wondered what lay beyond the horizon -- and below it. When I had the chance to travel to the ocean floor, to see the extraordinary creatures that thrive there, and to search for clues about the potential for life on other planets, I couldn’t wait to go.

The movie I made about this journey, Aliens of the Deep, uses the dramatic sweep of the large-format screen to tell the story of an expedition to one of Earth’s deepest, most extreme and unknown environments in search of the strange and alien creatures that live there.

Aliens of the Deep is the result of visually stunning expeditions to hydrothermal vent sites in the Atlantic and Pacific. These are violent volcanic regions where new planet is literally being born and where the interaction between ocean and molten rock creates plumes of super-heated, chemically-charged water that serve as oases for animals unlike anything seen elsewhere. There, six-foot-tall worms with blood-red plumes, blind white crabs, and an inconceivable biomass of shrimp capable of “seeing” heat all compete to find just the right location in the flow of the super-heated, life-giving water – or fry trying. These ecosystems are as close to alien as anything ever imagined, and provide one possible blueprint for life that might exist beyond our world.

Of course, I did not go alone. With me was a team of scientists from NASA and the National Science Foundation. We considered how the life forms we observed represent life that may one day be found in our outer space – not only on distant planets orbiting distant stars, but also within our own solar system.

Aliens of the Deep is a compelling teaching tool. Watching this film and participating in the thought-provoking activities in the Educator’s Guide will engage and motivate your students. Both deep-ocean and space research are interdisciplinary, as are the topics presented in the guide, all linked to national education standards. The guide will lead your class to greater insight into the mysteries of life in extreme environments and the potential for discovering life in outer space.

Enjoy the adventure,

James Cameron

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