[Northwestern University] By studying life deep inside a former gold mine, a Northwestern University-led team of scientists uncovered evidence that Earth’s hidden biosphere operates less like a random collection of […]
ecosystem
Posted inNanotechnology & SynBio
Ecological Constraints To Mirror Life
[bioRxiv] Our biosphere exhibits remarkable diversity yet is constrained by universal organizational principles, including molecular homochirality.
Posted inOrigin & Evolution of Life
Abiotic Sources Of Fixed Nitrogen Sustained Early Ecosystems For Several Hundred Million Years After The Origin Of Life
Nitrogen (N) plays a crucial role in controlling biological productivity. However, it remains unknown how Earth’s earliest ecosystems accessed bioavailable forms of nitrogen.
Posted inAway Teams & Field Reports, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Habitable Zones, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Sample Return, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
The Deep Sea Is An Untapped Evolutionary Engine Says New Study
Editor’s note: As we expand outward from Earth to other worlds we are almost certainly going to encounter things we did not expect to find – things that are unlikely […]
Posted inBiogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Gaia - Planetary Perspectives, Microbiology & Virology, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Hidden Viruses Reshape One Of Earth’s Largest Carbon Systems
Viruses play a far more active role in Earth’s carbon cycle than previously understood, according to new research that reveals how they infect and control microbes responsible for carbon production […]
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Gaia - Planetary Perspectives, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Microbiology & Virology, Plant Biology, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Orbital Biosignature Assay: Phytoplankton Bloom Off The U.S. Mid-Atlantic Coast
Editor’s note: As we begin to study worlds in our own solar system that might have life we use our home world as a testbed for the various ways to […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Extinction events, Impact events, Meteorites & Asteroids, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Did Impacts From Meteors Help Start Life On Earth?
Meteor impacts may have helped spark life on Earth, creating hot, chemical-rich environments where the first living cells could take shape, according to research integrated by a recent Rutgers University […]
Posted inPress Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Sample Return, Tricorders & Sensors, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
University of Delaware Robotics Study The Depths Of Earth’s Ocean
From the East Pacific Rise in the Pacific Ocean to the Mid-Atlantic Ridge in the Atlantic, researchers from the University of Delaware’s College of Earth, Ocean and Environment led the […]
Posted inBiogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Gaia - Planetary Perspectives, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Microbiology & Virology, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Microbiomes Interconnect On A Planetary-scale, New Study Finds
In a new study published in Cell, scientists in the Bork Group at EMBL Heidelberg reveal that microbes living in similar habitats are more alike than those simply inhabiting the […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Desert Worlds, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Habitable Zones, Microbiology & Virology, Press Release, Sample Return
Organisms In The Atacama Desert Soil Are Remarkably Diverse
A new study shows that resilient and remarkably diverse populations of organisms can persist in the soil despite harsh and extremely dry conditions. An international team led by researchers from […]