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  • The bottom of the sea, Davy Jones' locker, a notoriously unhealthy place for a human being to find themselves.

  • Yet, for thousands of sailors and aviators throughout history, that's exactly where their dead remains have ended up.

  • While on land we know that bacteria and insects help break down corpses, what happens when you die at sea?

  • Hello, and welcome to another episode of the "Infographics Show".

  • Today, we're taking a look at what happens to your body at the bottom of the sea.

  • If you drown out at sea, there's actually little chance of you reaching the bottom.

  • The human body is naturally buoyant enough that currents and waves can keep a corpse within the upper layers of the ocean for a long amount of time.

  • This can attract scavengers such as sharks who'll feed on a corpse.

  • Specifically, if you're involved in a ship sinking or a plane crash whose low-frequency sound waves could travel for hundreds of miles and alert sharks to the incoming human buffet.

  • If your corpse manages to sink, however, it may avoid predation altogethergiven that it sinks quickly enough.

  • The open ocean is split into two biomes, with a great void of water in between the two that is largely bereft of life.

  • That's the upper surface, which has most of the life we're well-acquainted with, such as dolphins, sharks, and whales.

  • And then the ocean floorfull of crabs, shrimp, and creatures directly from H.R. Giger's worst nightmares.

  • For a few hundred meters below and above these two biomes, life flourishes, but the space in between is often largely free of advanced life forms.

  • So, if your body manages to sink fast enough that it makes it past the upper biome, you'll hit the bottom intact.

  • But what happens then?

  • As most people know, the bottom of the ocean is very coldvery, very coldreaching temperatures between 0 and 3 degrees Celsius.

  • That's in contrast to temperatures as warm as 36 degrees Celsius in the Persian Gulf.

  • While you've likely been taught that water freezes at these temperatures and thus would think that your body would turn into an ice cube,

  • the incredible pressures at those depths actually compacts the salt in the sea water, which lowers its freezing point.

  • That pressure also physically prevents sea water from expanding and freezing into a solid.

  • So, you won't be an ice cubejust a very cold, salty corpse.

  • As you hit the bottom of the ocean, the first thing you're gonna do is attract the attention of Lysianassid amphipods

  • tiny shrimp-like creatures that are sort of like the flies and other insects of the deep-ocean world.

  • These tiny crustaceans have voracious appetites, and like a horde of starving piranhas, will quickly set upon your corpse.

  • But, wait, because it gets worse.

  • These tiny guys don't have jaws strong enough to puncture human skin, which means they'll work their way inside you and start consuming you from the inside out.

  • They find access to a corpse through the eyeswhich can be easily consumed by the little guysnose, mouth, any open wounds, and, well, your behind.

  • Once they've worked their way inside, they immediately attack the soft organs, and start eating their way out to the skin.

  • These amphipods will completely swarm your body, covering every square inch as they try to find their way to your soft, gooey center.

  • In just a matter of daysbetween three and fourthey will have reduced you to a hollow shell, leaving behind only bone and tough ligaments and cartilage.

  • Satisfied and having devoured everything they're capable of, they will leave you behind in search for other prey,

  • only to leave room for larger prawns such as Pandalus platyceros to move in.

  • These guys are the finishers, and come in to nibble on any remaining tough tissues, leaving nothing but perfectly-bleached bones after just 10 days.

  • This is only in highly-oxygenated waters, though, such as those found near continental shelves or with the right ocean currents.

  • In less oxygenated waters, there's less life at the bottom of the ocean, meaning your corpse can potentially remain in decent condition for a month or more.

  • However, if you sink to the bottom within a hundred or so miles from shore,

  • you can expect that there'll be nothing left to recover of you, except some perfectly-bleached bones after just a week.

  • Deep-ocean sharks may occasionally swing by and take bites out of you,

  • but, largely, you'll be consumed and devoured by tiny little shrimp, horrifically eaten from the inside out.

  • And that's why our favorite seafood is shrimpyou have to eat them before they eat you!

  • Want to know what happens to your corpse in other strange places?

  • Also, be sure to check out our other videoPlaced Weirder Than The Bermuda Triangle!

  • Thanks for watching, and, as always, don't forget to like, share, and subscribe.

  • We'll see you next time.

The bottom of the sea, Davy Jones' locker, a notoriously unhealthy place for a human being to find themselves.

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