microfossil Archives

Mt. St. Helens glacier caves with recordings performed at ambient air temperature. -- PLoS One via PubMed

Analog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Cryobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Fossils & Paleontology, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Microbiology & Virology, Polar / Alpine Expeditions, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Sample Return, Tricorders & Sensors, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Tricorder Tech: Extant Life Detection Using Label-Free Video Microscopy In Analog Aquatic Environments

by Keith CowingApril 4, 2025April 4, 2025

The ability of microbial active motion, morphology, and optical properties to serve as biosignatures was investigated by in situ video microscopy in a wide range of extreme field sites where […]

An integrated approach to date bacterial evolution and reconstruct the history of oxygen adaptation. We inferred a bacterial timetree by integrating genomic, fossil, and geochemical data and linking oxygen tolerance and aerobic metabolism to the GOE. Colors denote anaerobic (blue) and aerobic (red) states, whereas shades of purple show the fraction of aerobic lineages within extant bacterial phyla. Mitochondria and plastids were included to leverage the more extensive eukaryotic fossils. Land plants and animals are indicated for temporal comparison. -- Science

AI - Data - Apps - Cybernetics, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Fossils & Paleontology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Microbiology & Virology, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release

Machine Learning Helps Construct An Evolutionary Timeline Of Bacteria

by Keith CowingApril 4, 2025April 4, 2025

University of Queensland scientists have helped to construct a detailed timeline for bacterial evolution, suggesting some bacteria used oxygen long before evolving the ability to produce it through photosynthesis.

Sampled area and the grid of the analyzed area. (A) Optical image of the fossil filament. (B) Optical image of the filament after gold coating and LIMS campaign. (C) SEM image of laser ablation craters of the LIMS covering the fossil filament area, forming a grid of 17 × 25 craters. The direction of measurement is indicated with arrows. (D) SEM image of the area chosen for data analysis, forming a grid of 11 × 12 laser ablation craters. -- Frontiers

Exploration Gear & Tech, Fossils & Paleontology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Microbiology & Virology, Status Report, Tricorders & Sensors

Tricorder Tech: Laser-powered Device Tested On Earth Could Help Us Detect Microbial Fossils On Mars

by Keith CowingMarch 10, 2025September 18, 2025

The first life on Earth formed four billion years ago, as microbes living in pools and seas: what if the same thing happened on Mars? If it did, how would […]

The Köröm thermal well green [KG] biofilm sample and its two isolated layers. Close-up photo (left) of a cross-section of the green [KG] biofilm sample. The sample shows an exterior (upper panel), greenish blue colour [KGA] and an interior (lower panel), pale green colour [KGB] layer. The red arrows mark carbonate precipitates. -- Eötvös Loránd University

Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Microbiology & Virology, Press Release

Adaptation to Extreme Conditions: Thermal Water Biofilm Studies Could Help Understand Ancient Ecosystems

by Keith CowingMarch 7, 2025September 18, 2025

Hungarian researchers have discovered unique bacterial communities in thermal waters that may help unravel the development of stromatolites, one of Earth’s oldest rock formations. These findings not only contribute to […]

An example of stromatolites investigated in the study found in the Cheshire Formation of the Belingwe greenstone belt, Zimbabwe. Photo credit: Professor Axel Hofmann

Astrogeology, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Fossils & Paleontology, Lava / magma ocean / Volcanic Worlds, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Microbiology & Virology, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Impact Of Volcanic Activity On Early Marine Life

by Keith CowingMarch 3, 2025

Analysis of fossilised rocks known as stromatolites from more than two-and-a-half billion years ago has provided new insights into the conditions on Earth before the evolution of oxygen.

Figure 4. Optical microscopy and SEM images and EDX spectra. Optical microscopy images, under transmitted plane-polarized light (A, B), reflected plane-polarized light (C, E, F), transmitted cross-polarized light (D, J, K). SEM images (G, H) and SEM-EDX spectrum (I) of permineralized filamentous microfossils within the turbid laminae. (A) Network of sinuous µm long filaments to mm long curved fossil filaments (white triangles), and 20–80 µm width. (B) Close-up image of fossil filament with two exposed sides showing the filament’s position to the crystal plane. (C) Image of hollow to partially hollow filament (black arrow). (E, F) Images show the offset of the gypsum-embedded fossil filament, contrasting with a secondary veinlet (black arrows). (D, J) Images showing high birefringence of the subspherical minerals. (K) Image of a fossil filament with black and opaque inclusions (white arrows). (G) SEM image of hollow filament marked in (A). Note the presence of an attached small hole on the right side of the fossil filament. (H) Magnification of the marked white rectangle in (G) showing the different mineral located in the inner layer of the hollow filament. (I) Comparison of EDX spectra of the fossil filament (blue and red) with the host EDX spectrum (yellow) (measured locations are indicated in (H)). (the three spectra were normalized to the 197Au cps/eV value).

Away Teams & Field Reports, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Fossils & Paleontology, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Mars, Microbiology & Virology, Press Release

Fossil Microorganisms In Messinian Gypsum: Implications For The Search For Life On Mars

by Keith CowingMarch 1, 2025March 1, 2025

Researchers from the University of Bern, in collaboration with the University of Science and Technology Houari Boumediene in Algeria, have made significant progress in astrobiology. In a recently published study, […]

In black: enzymes and metabolic pathways inferred to be present in LUCA with at least PP = 0.75, with sampling in both prokaryotic domains. In grey: those inferred in our least-stringent threshold of PP = 0.50. The analysis supports the presence of a complete WLP and an almost complete TCA cycle across multiple confidence thresholds. Metabolic maps derived from KEGG47 database through iPath109. GPI, glycosylphosphatidylinositol; DDT, 1,1,1-trichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl) ethane. -- Nature

Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Fossils & Paleontology, Origin & Evolution of Life, Status Report

The Nature Of LUCA – The Last Universal Common Ancestor – and its Impact on the Early Earth System

by Keith CowingJanuary 21, 2025January 21, 2025

The nature of the last universal common ancestor (LUCA), its age and its impact on the Earth system have been the subject of vigorous debate across diverse disciplines, often based […]

Spherical microfossils. (A) Cluster of H. macroreticulata Barghorn in a hematite-rich stromatolite lamina. (B) High-resolution photomicrograph of two small H. macroreticulata Barghoorn in contact. (C and D) Larger spherical microfossils, with their internal structure revealed. -- Geobiology via PubMed

Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Fossils & Paleontology, Habitable Zones, Microbiology & Virology, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Iron‐Oxidizing Bacteria Bloomed in Shallow‐Marine, Subtidal Environments 1.88 Billion Years Ago

by Keith CowingDecember 19, 2024December 19, 2024

The majority of large iron formations (IFs) were deposited leading up to Earth’s great oxidation episode (GOE). Following the GOE, IF deposition decreased for almost 500 Myr.

NASA's Mars Perseverance rover acquired this image, a nighttime mosaic of the Malgosa Crest abrasion patch at “Serpentine Rapids,” using its SHERLOC WATSON camera, located on the turret at the end of the rover's robotic arm. The diameter of the abrasion patch is 5 centimeters (about 2 inches) and the large green spot in the upper center left of the image is approximately 2 millimeters (about 0.08 inch) in diameter. Mosaic source images have been debayered, flat-fielded, and linearly color stretched. This image was acquired on Aug. 19, 2024 (sol 1243, or Martian day 1,243 of the Mars 2020 mission) at the local mean solar time of 19:45:30. NASA/JPL-Caltech Larger image

Astrogeology, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Fossils & Paleontology, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Mars, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Sample Return, Status Report

Mars Perseverance Rover Observes Red Rocks With Green Spots at Serpentine Rapids – Possible Biosignatures?

by Keith CowingOctober 27, 2024October 27, 2024

Editor’s note: I will make this simple: did NASA find evidence of life on Mars? No. Did NASA find an interesting rock feature that might signal or indicate that there […]

Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Microbiology & Virology, Nanotechnology & SynBio, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release, Tardigrades

Trying To Understand The Tardigrade Body Plan

by Keith CowingAugust 23, 2024August 23, 2024

Tardigrades, often called “water bears”, are fascinating microscopic organisms known for their incredible resilience—they can survive anything from deadly radiation to arctic temperatures to the vacuum of space. And though […]

microfossil

Tricorder Tech: Extant Life Detection Using Label-Free Video Microscopy In Analog Aquatic Environments

Machine Learning Helps Construct An Evolutionary Timeline Of Bacteria

Tricorder Tech: Laser-powered Device Tested On Earth Could Help Us Detect Microbial Fossils On Mars

Adaptation to Extreme Conditions: Thermal Water Biofilm Studies Could Help Understand Ancient Ecosystems

Impact Of Volcanic Activity On Early Marine Life

Fossil Microorganisms In Messinian Gypsum: Implications For The Search For Life On Mars

The Nature Of LUCA – The Last Universal Common Ancestor – and its Impact on the Early Earth System

Iron‐Oxidizing Bacteria Bloomed in Shallow‐Marine, Subtidal Environments 1.88 Billion Years Ago

Mars Perseverance Rover Observes Red Rocks With Green Spots at Serpentine Rapids – Possible Biosignatures?

Trying To Understand The Tardigrade Body Plan

Landforms In Ares Vallis Carved Out By Ancient Water Flow

Evolution of Stellar Activity and Habitable Zone (EATEN): III. X-ray Activity of Dwarfs in Open Clusters and Field Stars

Radial Velocity Detection Of The TRAPPIST-1 Planetary System With SPIRou And NIRPS

The Long-term Persistence Of Microbial Biospheres Introduces A Temporal Bias 1 Into The Drake Equation: Implications For The Search For Extraterrestrial Life

A Dual-mineral Protection Mechanism For Organic Matter Preservation And Its Implications For Mars Habitability And Biosignature Detection