Scientists have been able to find signs of microbial life in one of the harshest spots on Earth, giving more hope that life can also be found in some unknown space environments. Deep in the Canadian Arctic, scientists have identified signs of life in the low-oxygen and extremely salty waters of the Lost Hammer Spring. Water in the spring rises through 1,970 feet of permafrost in one of the coldest places on Earth. The discovery raises the hopes of many that microbial life (if any) can also be found in environments similar to the icy moons Europa and Enceladus.
“It took two years of working with the sediments before we were able to successfully detect active microbial communities. The salinity of the environment interferes with both extraction and sequencing of microbes, so when we were able to find evidence of active microbial communities, it was a very satisfying experiment,” said lead researcher microbiologist Ellis Magnuson of McGill University in Canada.
The microbes the team found are entirely new with some very specific adaptations that allow them to exist and thrive in harsh environments like Lost Hammer Spring. Most importantly, these microbes are chemically nourished. These types of organisms, whose name literally means “rock eaters,” produce energy through the oxidation of inorganic molecules. Chemolithotropes can live with or without oxygen.
“The microbes that we found and described in Lost Hammer Spring are surprising, because, unlike other microorganisms, they do not depend on organic matter or oxygen to survive,” microbiologist Lyle White explained.
These microorganisms can survive by ingesting and inhaling simple inorganic compounds such as methane, sulfides, sulfates, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide, all of which are found on the surface of Mars.
“They can also fix carbon dioxide and nitrogen gases from the atmosphere, all of which makes them highly adapted to both survive and thrive in the extremely harsh environments on Earth and beyond,” said White, a professor of polar microbiology at Canada’s McGill University.
Scientists believe that the ice on Mars’ polar caps consists of very salty water and that beneath the icy surfaces of Europa, Jupiter’s sixth-largest moon, and Enceladus, Saturn’s sixth-largest moon, there are oceans of very salty water. These environments may host similar extraterrestrial microbes that have adapted to the conditions.