Scientists from the NOAA ship Okeanos Explorer have identified a mysterious golden object at the bottom of the ocean, which they believe was a chunk of'skin' left by a sea anemone. The object was found tightly adhered to a rock near the Gulf of Alaska, around 3,250 meters (about 2 miles) below the ocean's surface. Initial speculation suggested that the object was the abandoned egg case of some deep-dwelling creature. However, after three years of painstaking investigation, scientists discovered the object, which was identified as Relicanthus daphneae, a deep-sea cnidarian with tentacles that can reach more than 2 meters long. The discovery of the object led to a complex mystery that required several individuals of various levels of expertise to solve. The researchers believe the object may be a cuticle left behind by an animal that can detach from its surface, suggesting that the cuticle may also be a clue to how animals reproduce in an inaccessible habitat.