The discovery of hydrothermal vents – where volcanoes at the seafloor produce hot fluid exceeding 350 degrees Celsius, or 662 degrees Fahrenheit, fundamentally changed our understanding about Earth and life […]
Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Posted inPress Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
A New Look At Deep Sea Microbes
Microbial cells are found in abundance in marine sediments beneath the ocean and make up a significant amount of the total microbial biomass on the planet. Microbes found deeper in […]
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Icy Worlds, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Ocean Worlds Exploration and the Search for Life
This is a community draft white paper for submission to the Decadal Survey in Planetary Science and Astrobiology, reflecting the views of the NASA Astrobiology Program’s Research Coordination Network for […]
Posted inEuropa, Icy Worlds, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
The Ocean Inside Europa Could Be Habitable
A new model from NASA scientists supports the theory that the interior ocean in Jupiter’s moon Europa would be able to sustain life. In addition they have calculated that this […]
Posted inPress Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Ancient Ocean Oxygen Levels Associated With Changing Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide
Why do carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere wax and wane in conjunction with the warm and cold periods of Earth’s past? Scientists have been trying to answer this question […]
Posted inExtremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Hundreds Of Hydrothermal Chimneys Discovered On The Seafloor Off The Pacific Northwest
At the Endeavour Segment of the Juan de Fuca Ridge, about 350 kilometers (220 miles) northwest of Washington State, the seafloor is ripping apart. Magma beneath the seafloor heats water […]
Posted inPress Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Life Is Bubbling Up To Seafloor With Petroleum From Deep Below
The COVID-19 pandemic is a stark reminder that we move through a world shaped by unseen life. Bacteria, viruses, and other microscopic organisms regulate the Earth’s vital functions and resources, […]
Posted inPress Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Role Of Ocean Microbes In Climate Effects
A new study shows that “hotspots” of nutrients surrounding phytoplankton — which are tiny marine algae producing approximately half of the oxygen we breathe every day — play an outsized […]
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Dusty Iron in the Ancient Oceans
A recent study examines the affect of dust-borne iron on primary productivity in the oceans of the ancient Earth.
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Extinction events, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Ocean Anoxia during a Biocrisis on the Ancient Earth
A recent study provides new constraints on the timing of ocean anoxia during the Smithian-Spathian boundary (SSB), which represents a period of ‘biocrisis’ for Earth’s marine ecosystems as they recovered […]