[L to R] Sangay Tshering, Pema Namgay, Passang Balu, and Jut Wynne (center) processing a captured Great Himalayan Leaf-nosed Bat (Hipposideros armiger), Rangtse Ney Cave, Gakiling Gewog.

Away Teams & Field Reports, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Exploration Gear & Tech, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Nomenclature, Systematics, Natural History, Press Release, Sample Return

Away Team Visits Bhutan’s Unexplored Caves

by Keith CowingApril 30, 2025April 30, 2025

Famous for its breathtaking mountain landscapes and cliffside Buddhist monasteries, the small South Asian kingdom of Bhutan is also home to miles upon miles of caves that have been shrouded […]

In the technique known as “environmental DNA metabarcoding,” probes are designed to target specific DNA fragments, similar to how anglers use specific bait to catch a particular species. The challenge is creating probes that are specific enough to just the group one tries to detect, but also general enough to catch anything within that group. Credit WU Qianqian

Analog Studies, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Habitable Zones, Nomenclature, Systematics, Natural History, Press Release, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Ocean World Genomic Assays: Searching For Terrestrial Cephalopod DNA

by Keith CowingApril 16, 2025April 16, 2025

New DNA probes allow for efficient surveying of the hidden lives of squids and octopuses in the deep sea. This development by Kobe University provides an effective tool for marine […]

Sampling information and morphological characteristics of 11 deep-sea species (Image by IHB)

Away Teams & Field Reports, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Icy Worlds, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Nomenclature, Systematics, Natural History, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Ocean Planet Biodiversity Genomics

by Keith CowingApril 13, 2025April 13, 2025

The deep sea, covering approximately 65% of Earth’s surface, has long been considered a biological desert. In this extreme environment—particularly in the hadal zone at depths greater than 6,000 meters—organisms […]

A diagram showing the evolutionary history from an aquatic organism and adaptive traits of CSP1-3 phylum for each habitat.-- Michigan State University

Analog Studies, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Gaia - Planetary Perspectives, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Microbiology & Virology, Nomenclature, Systematics, Natural History, Press Release

New Microbes Discovered Deep In Earth’s Soil

by Keith CowingApril 8, 2025April 8, 2025

Leonardo da Vinci once said, “We know more about the movement of celestial bodies than about the soil underfoot.”

Prototaxites -- Illustration by Matthew Humpage

Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Fossils & Paleontology, Microgravity, Nomenclature, Systematics, Natural History, Origin & Evolution of Life, Plant Biology, Status Report

Ancient Prototaxites Don’t Belong To Any Living Lineage – Possibly A Distinct Branch of Multicellular Earth life

by Keith CowingMarch 29, 2025March 29, 2025

Prototaxites was an extinct lineage of multicellular terrestrial eukaryotes. Prototaxites was the first giant organism to live on the terrestrial surface, reaching sizes of 8 metres in the Early Devonian.

This cover image, captured by Xiang Xiao from inside the human-occupied vehicle (HOV) Fendouzhe during sampling at the trench bottom, reveals the mysterious life world of the hadal zone. -- Cell

Away Teams & Field Reports, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Habitable Zones, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Microbiology & Virology, Missions & Hardware, Nomenclature, Systematics, Natural History, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Life Thrives In The Deepest Ocean: New Discoveries From The Mariana Trench

by Keith CowingMarch 11, 2025

The latest scientific research at the deepest part of the ocean has revealed something extraordinary – biodiversity is extensive and flourishing despite the extreme conditions.

The crew of the Enterprise vies a map of the Sigma Draconis system and its three Class M planets - "Spock's Brain" - Paramount/CBS.

Astronomy & Telescopes, Brown Dwarfs, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Gas Giants, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Lava / magma ocean / Volcanic Worlds, Nomenclature, Systematics, Natural History, Science Fiction, Status Report, Stellar Cartography, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Architecture Classification For Extrasolar Planetary Systems

by Keith CowingFebruary 22, 2025February 22, 2025

This paper presents a classification framework for the architectures of planetary systems based on a complete survey of the confirmed exoplanet population.

Evolutionary scenario of Fgf subfamilies in chordates. a) Evolutionary tree of chordate subphyla indicating main events of losses (L), gains (G), duplications (D), or expansions by burst of duplications (E), as well as main associated patterns of conservation, innovation, function shuffling and extinction of Fgf expression domains. -- Animals

Fossils & Paleontology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Nomenclature, Systematics, Natural History, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release

A New Evolutionary Scenario Marked By Massive Gene Loss And Expansion

by Keith CowingFebruary 11, 2025

Evolution is traditionally associated with a process of increasing complexity and gaining new genes.

Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Nomenclature, Systematics, Natural History, Press Release

Planetary-Scale Genomics: Sequencing The Blue Whale And Etruscan Shrew Genomes

by Keith CowingFebruary 1, 2025

Size doesn’t matter when it comes to genome sequencing in the animal kingdom, as a team of researchers at the Morgridge Institute for Research recently illustrated when assembling the sequences […]

Overview maps illustrating Arctic Ocean bathymetry and source data for the compilation of IBCAO 5.0. (a) Bathymetry based on IBCAO 5.0. Two versions are available: one with under-ice topography of Greenland (shown), and another with the ice-sheet surface topography, both based on BedMachine Version 5 DMT180. The bold black line shows the Seabed 2030 Arctic region, for which a geographic DTM is produced and contributed to the global GEBCO DTM. The square region shown in brighter colours represents the more limited extent of the IBCAO DTM. White stars show the locations of detailed comparison between IBCAO 5.0 and 4.0 in Fig. 9. (b) Source data displayed based on the mapping method (MB = Multibeam; SB = Singlebeam). (c) Close-up of the East Siberian Sea depicting soundings from charts (in black) and digitised contours (in white). The nodes of the digitised contours, utilised in the gridding process, may be challenging to discern due to their sparse density. To enhance visibility, several contours are presented as polygons in white. (d) Close-up of North Greenland showing a part of the least mapped area of the Arctic Ocean. (e) Source data displayed as individual data sets using different colours. Note that the high resolution of the IBCAO 5.0 gridded products precludes displaying fine details in overview figures. For detailed information, readers are referred to the downloadable grids. -- PNAS via PubMed

Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Away Teams & Field Reports, Exploration Gear & Tech, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Nomenclature, Systematics, Natural History, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Ocean World Cartography: The International Bathymetric Chart of the Arctic Ocean Version 5.0

by Keith CowingJanuary 12, 2025January 11, 2025

Knowledge about seafloor depth, or bathymetry, is crucial for various marine activities, including scientific research, offshore industry, safety of navigation, and ocean exploration.

Nomenclature, Systematics, Natural History

Away Team Visits Bhutan’s Unexplored Caves

Ocean World Genomic Assays: Searching For Terrestrial Cephalopod DNA

Ocean Planet Biodiversity Genomics

New Microbes Discovered Deep In Earth’s Soil

Ancient Prototaxites Don’t Belong To Any Living Lineage – Possibly A Distinct Branch of Multicellular Earth life

Life Thrives In The Deepest Ocean: New Discoveries From The Mariana Trench

Architecture Classification For Extrasolar Planetary Systems

A New Evolutionary Scenario Marked By Massive Gene Loss And Expansion

Ocean World Cartography: The International Bathymetric Chart of the Arctic Ocean Version 5.0

Tricorder Tech: New Handheld Device Maps Chemical Composition Using Infrared Light

No Statistically Significant Evidence For A Correlation Between Stellar And planetary Composition

Water Planet Recon: How Accurately Can We Measure Earth Ocean’s Deepest Point?

Webb Reveals A Stunning Panorama Of Star Formation

Deep Learning of SHERLOC Raman Spectra For Facilitating Mars Astromaterial Identification

2027 Sagan Summer Workshop Exoplanet Masses: In the Era of Gaia and Extreme Precision Radial Velocities