3 min readNew DelhiJun 15, 2026 11:00 PM IST The ocean is full of creatures that seem straight out of science fiction, and scientists have just added another one to the list: a tiny bright blue octopus discovered deep beneath the waters near the Galápagos Islands. About the size of a golf ball, this tiny creature was found nearly 1,773 metres below the Pacific Ocean’s surface and has now been confirmed as an entirely new species. Named Microeledone galapagensis, the octopus was first spotted during a 2015 deep-sea expedition near Darwin Island in the Galápagos archipelago. Researchers aboard the exploration vessel E/V Nautilus had sent a robotic submersible named Hercules to explore an underwater mountain when cameras picked up the unusual little animal resting on the seafloor. Even scientists watching the footage in real time were instantly taken in by the sight. But what first looked like an adorable deep-sea encounter soon turned into a scientific mystery. Why scientists knew this octopus was something unusual After collecting specimens and bringing them back to the Charles …