Otherworldly bacteria that use radiated water for food discovered two miles down

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About two miles below the ground in a South African gold mine co-author Duane Moser stands next to the fracture zone (white area) where the one-of-a-kind bacteria were found. Credit: Images courtesy Li-Hung Lin and Duane Moser
About two miles below the ground in a South African gold mine, co-author Duane Moser stands next to the fracture zone (white area) where the one-of-a-kind bacteria were found. Credit: Images courtesy Li-Hung Lin and Duane Moser

Researchers have discovered an isolated, self-sustaining, bacterial community living under extreme conditions almost two miles deep beneath the surface in a South African gold mine. It is the first microbial community demonstrated to be exclusively dependent on geologically produced sulfur and hydrogen and one of the few ecosystems found on Earth that does not depend on energy from the Sun in any way. The discovery, appearing in the October 20 issue of Science, raises the possibility that similar bacteria could live beneath the surface of other worlds, such as Mars or Jupiter's moon Europa.


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All News summaries for October 19, 2006

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