[Journal of Experimental Biology] Tardigrades are tiny ecdysozoans – creatures that grow by shedding their cuticle – with approximately 1500 species that have spread across the planet, from the ocean […]
microbiology
Posted inExtremeophiles and Extreme Environments
Bacteria That Convert Uranium Into A Stable Chemical Compound
[HZDR] The radioactive heavy metal uranium is usually found in the soil in a mineral-bound form but can be converted into soluble forms by environmental influences or mining activities. If […]
Posted inExtremeophiles and Extreme Environments
From Mars to Minas: Research Reclassifies Organisms That Thrive In Highly Saline Environments
[JORNAL DA USP – Universidade de São Paulo] Organisms that defy life by thriving in environments where most other living beings could not survive. To date, there is no scientific […]
![(A) Sampling location at the origin of Río Tinto, Spain (modified from García-Moyano et al., 2007). (B) The iron microbialites (white arrow) grew horizontally on a northeast-facing wall. (C) -- [GSA Bulletin]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Iron-microbialites.png?resize=1200%2C720&ssl=1)
Posted inAnalog Studies
Iron Microbialites From An Acidic Martian Analog (Río Tinto, Spain)—Implications For Finding Life On Mars
[GSA Bulletin] The search for life on Mars requires identifying suitable biosignatures detectable by rover missions or in returned samples. To support the progressing astrobiological exploration of Mars, we investigated […]
![Effects of filtration method and sequencing platform on microbial abundance and community composition. Comparison of microbial abundance, sequencing performance, and taxonomic composition among Yellowstone hot spring samples processed using Sterivex, Supor, and polycarbonate (PC) filtration devices and analyzed by Illumina and Oxford Nanopore sequencing. Upper panels show absolute microbial abundance estimates (black bars) and sequence read lengths (red symbols). Lower panels depict species-level relative abundances of dominant bacterial and archaeal (red asterisk) taxa recovered from each sample. -- [biorxiv.org]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Differential-efficiency.png?resize=1200%2C708&ssl=1)
Posted inSample Return
Differential Efficiency Of Sampling Devices In The Measurement Of Microbial Diversity Of Yellowstone National Park Hot Springs
[biorxiv.org] Metagenomic characterization of low-biomass Yellowstone National Park (YNP) hot spring waters remains challenging because microbial recovery is influenced by filtration methodology, sample preservation, DNA extraction, and sequencing strategy.
Posted inArctic / Antarctic / Alpine
Could Lake Joyce Have Acted As A Long-lived Proglacial Refugium In Antarctica’s McMurdo Dry Valleys?
[Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research] Lake Joyce of the McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDV), Antarctica, contains an endemic copepod population (Diacyclops joycei) that has not been identified from apparently suitable habitats […]
Posted inExtremeophiles and Extreme Environments
Sample Return From Earth’s Deep Biosphere
[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 […]
![A schematic showing the key abitoic (black dashed boxes) and biotic (white dashed box) processes occurring in the model (reproduced from Nicholson et al. 2022). -- [astro-ph.EP]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/A-generalised-microbial.png?resize=1200%2C719&ssl=1)
Posted inBiosignatures & Paleobiology
A Generalised Microbial Cell Model For Methane Biosignature Predictions
[astro-ph.EP] The majority of potentially habitable planets detected to date are likely quite different to Earth, for example, being larger in radius and mass, differing rotation rates and with host […]
Posted inAway Teams & Field Reports
Expedition Led By MBARI Researchers Reveals A Remarkable, And Rare, Form Of Deep-sea Hydrothermal Vents
[MBARI] An international team of researchers, led by MBARI Senior Scientist Aaron Micallef and Schmidt Ocean Institute, has discovered two remarkable fields of hydrothermal vents in the Doldrums Megatransform and […]
Posted inBiosignatures & Paleobiology
Orbital Biosignature Assay: Phytoplankton Blooms In The Black Sea
[NASA] The turquoise color is likely caused by coccolithophores, a type of phytoplankton covered with calcium carbonate plates that can give surface waters a milky-blue appearance. These types of phytoplankton […]