NOAA scientists have discovered a new species of "beautiful and unique" ctenophore jellyfish

According to CNET, a research team from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) accidentally discovered a new comb jellyfish species while processing an underwater video. "This is unique because we were able to describe a new species based entirely on high-definition video," NOAA fisheries scientist Allen Collins said in an Nov. 20 statement.

The NOAA team named the translucent animal Duobrachium sparksae. This is a ctenophore, commonly known as a comb jellyfish. The new species lives off the coast of Puerto Rico and was first spotted in 2015 in footage captured by NOAA's Deep Finder RC car. NOAA released a stunning video showing comb jellyfish floating on the ocean floor.

Collins describes it as looking like a party balloon. The researchers measured the animal with a laser system, which is about 2.3 inches (6 centimeters) long, and that doesn't include the long overhanging tentacles.

NOAA fisheries scientists knew right away that the creature was something unusual, but it would take time to announce a new species. The team published a paper describing Duobrachium sparksae this month in the journal Plankton and Benthic Research.

"It's a beautiful and unique organism," said Mike Ford, a noaa fisheries scientist and lead author of the study. The tentacle appears to have touched the seabed, but it's unclear if it somehow anchored to the ocean floor.

The researchers found three individuals, but there are still many unknowns about these animals. Scientists still hope to collect actual samples of this comb jellyfish to fill in some gaps.