7천 미터 심해의 타임캡슐과 울산 장생포의 새로운 꿈: 고래가 잇는 과거와 현재 > K-wave Trends

The ‘Whale Cemetery’ discovered in the Diamantina Sea in the southeastern Indian Ocean is more than just a collection of dead creatures, it is a huge natural history museum containing millions of years of evolution. It is a monumental achievement in the marine science community that an international joint research team from China, Italy, and New Zealand identified 476 whale fossils and 5 ongoing ‘whale drop’ sites in a wide area ranging from 4,600 m to 7,000 m depth. In particular, the fact that the oldest fossils date back to the Pliocene period, approximately 5.3 million years ago, proves the region to be a unique archive for tracing the evolution of whales on a geological time scale. These whale graves, distributed over 1,200 km, are living proof that the deep-sea ecosystem is not an isolated space, but that living things have connected and evolved using the organic matter of whale carcasses as a stepping stone.

The deep-sea whale drop ecosystem is a stark example of how life adapts and thrives even in harsh, extreme environments. Thousands of meters below the seafloor, where there is not even light, whale carcasses are not simply rotting debris, but serve as an oasis of biodiversity that provides energy to numerous life forms, including spider starfish, bone-eating worms called Osedax, and chemosynthetic bacteria. The fact that 35 taxa of macroinvertebrates, including the new species discovered by the research team, make their home here strongly supports the hypothesis that whale carcasses serve as ecological hubs similar to hydrothermal vents, helping to disperse deep-sea communities. This is also important in terms of ocean carbon sequestration, as the amount of carbon accumulated in whale graveyards suggests the invisible efforts deep-sea ecosystems are making in regulating global warming.

Meanwhile, another type of change is taking place in Jangsaengpo, Ulsan, mediated by whales. Jangsaengpo, which once prospered as the country's largest whaling base, went through a downturn after the ban on whaling, but is now preparing to take a full-fledged leap forward as a tourist destination beyond its title as a special whale culture zone. The recently completed family-style lodging facility ‘Goraejam’ was created by remodeling an old naval quarters, and reflects the local government’s will to transform Jangsaengpo into a place where you can stay for a few days and enjoy culture, rather than just a passing stopover. This is interpreted as a strategic move to preserve the past whaling history while injecting new vitality into the local economy by building infrastructure tailored to the needs of modern tourists.

Amid this flow of change, the ‘Southern Area Tourism Development Project’ promoted by Nam-gu, Ulsan serves as a bridge to a future-oriented tourism paradigm while preserving Jangsaengpo’s unique identity. By linking extreme experience facilities such as Wales Cart and various cultural complex facilities such as Whale Back Road with lodging infrastructure, tourists can enjoy dynamic experiences during the day and relax in the atmosphere of the Whale Culture Village at night. The reasonable fee of 80,000 won in peak season for a family of four will be an important driving force in lowering the threshold for stay-at-home tourism and creating memories in family visitors that make them want to visit Jangsaengpo again. If the symbolic entity of the whale was a strong support for the deep-sea ecosystem in the past, it has now become a central point that attracts people as a cultural asset of the city.