Tag: deep life

Deep life: Strange creatures living far below our feet

In some ways, the depths of the Earth’s crust are the final frontier for biologists. In these isolated ecosystems lurk organisms that defy many established biological rules. There are microbes that metabolise so slowly they may be millions of years old; bacteria that survive without benefiting from the sun’s energy; and animals that do what no animal should – live their entire lives without oxygen. Image: matthewvenn

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Deepest point in the ocean is teeming with life

Hollywood director James Cameron found little evidence of life when he descended nearly 11,000 metres to the deepest point in the world’s oceans last year. If only he had taken a microscope and looked just a few centimetres deeper. Researchers have discovered unusually high levels of microbial activity in the sediments at the site of Cameron’s dive – Challenger Deep. Image: Anni Glud

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