Microbial life found in huge quantities beneath Antarctic ice sheet - Polidicks

Sauce: [url]http://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/science/diverse-microbial-life-beneath-antarctic-ice-sheet/article6335337.ece[/url] [quote]Scientists have found evidence of microbial life at a depth of 800 metres below the West Antarctic ice sheet in the Subglacial Lake Whillans. The depth of the Lake at the drilling site was about 2.2 metres. The results are published today (August 21) in the journal Nature. The extremophiles (microorganisms that live in extreme environments like very high or low temperature, extreme pressure etc) in the Subglacial Lake Whillans survive at very low temperature of -49 degree C and in a highly alkaline environment (pH of 8.1). The pressure at a depth of 800 metres where the Lake is found is about eight megapascal. The Lake water was not saturated with oxygen. The Lake supports a rich and diverse microbial community of bacteria and archaea — over 3,900 operational taxonomical units (definition of a species or group of species when only DNA sequence data is available) with average cell density of 1.3 x 10 cells per millilitre. According to the paper, the carbon biomass estimates are 3-50 fold higher than that observed beneath the Ross Ice Shelf. Like some other extremophiles, these microbes convert the inorganic compounds found in the rock into food and use carbon dioxide as their source of carbon.[/quote] Life always finds a way, eh? that said, chemosynthesis is one of the most important means of keeping life going in deep sea communities.

Lets send a probe to Titan and Europa already!

Extremophiles must be so interesting to research. You could never be complacent, and you'd never leave a stone unturned.

[QUOTE=Bradyns;45759659]Extremophiles must be so interesting to research.[/QUOTE] Well, I was so interested in microbiology myself that if I hadn't studied medicine I would have gone on to become a microbiologist instead :v:

And the ice sheets gonna melt up and everyone gonna dieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

It's these little guys that give me hope that we could find some life in Europa or on Titan.

Best put Kurt Russell on standby just in case...

I just watched Europa Report on netflix. Such a crappy movie.

[QUOTE=Buck.;45759601]Lets send a probe to Titan and Europa already![/QUOTE] why does everyone always forget about Enceladus [thumb]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5f/Enceladusstripes_cassini.jpg/640px-Enceladusstripes_cassini.jpg[/thumb] how can you not love a planet that looks like Hoth and has big rad [I]ice volcanoes[/I] that shoot so high they go into orbit? the water vapor that falls back to ground even kinda acts like snow in a weird way just look how fucking cool this is [thumb]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0e/Enceladus_geysers.jpg/1024px-Enceladus_geysers.jpg[/thumb] [thumb]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a6/Fountains_of_Enceladus_PIA07758.jpg/800px-Fountains_of_Enceladus_PIA07758.jpg[/thumb] but no you stick with stupid Cow Farts McTitan, i'll just be hanging out here next to Saturn with Han Solo and my sick tauntaun

[QUOTE=Cone;45760686]why does everyone always forget about Enceladus [thumb]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5f/Enceladusstripes_cassini.jpg/640px-Enceladusstripes_cassini.jpg[/thumb] how can you not love a planet that looks like Hoth and has big rad [I]ice volcanoes[/I] that shoot so high they go into orbit? the water vapor that falls back to ground even kinda acts like snow in a weird way just look how fucking cool this is [thumb]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0e/Enceladus_geysers.jpg/1024px-Enceladus_geysers.jpg[/thumb] [thumb]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a6/Fountains_of_Enceladus_PIA07758.jpg/800px-Fountains_of_Enceladus_PIA07758.jpg[/thumb] but no you stick with stupid Cow Farts McTitan, i'll just be hanging out here next to Saturn with Han Solo and my sick tauntaun[/QUOTE] The alien population at Enceladus have noticed humanity's destructive behavior and are firing their ice volcano jets to leave the solar system. Obviously.

[QUOTE=booster;45760738]The alien population at Enceladus have noticed humanity's destructive behavior and are firing their ice volcano jets to leave the solar system. Obviously.[/QUOTE] Fuck them humans, we're out of here. [IMG]http://i.usatoday.net/communitymanager/_photos/science-fair/2011/09/26/Enceladusx-large.jpg[/IMG]

[QUOTE=Cone;45760686]why does everyone always forget about Enceladus [thumb]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5f/Enceladusstripes_cassini.jpg/640px-Enceladusstripes_cassini.jpg[/thumb] how can you not love a planet that looks like Hoth and has big rad [I]ice volcanoes[/I] that shoot so high they go into orbit? the water vapor that falls back to ground even kinda acts like snow in a weird way just look how fucking cool this is [thumb]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0e/Enceladus_geysers.jpg/1024px-Enceladus_geysers.jpg[/thumb] [thumb]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a6/Fountains_of_Enceladus_PIA07758.jpg/800px-Fountains_of_Enceladus_PIA07758.jpg[/thumb] but no you stick with stupid Cow Farts McTitan, i'll just be hanging out here next to Saturn with Han Solo and my sick tauntaun[/QUOTE] Because Enceladus is really tiny and cold, so we look at the bigger, more watery-icy moon.

[QUOTE=Buck.;45759601]Lets send a probe to Titan and Europa already![/QUOTE] And bring a vial of extremophiles along with, just in case the planet is dead.

[QUOTE=Zonesylvania;45759463]highly alkaline environment (pH of 8.1).[/QUOTE] Unless I'm mistaken isn't this fairly close to being neutral? I though a pH of 7.0 was neutral.

[QUOTE=Alice3173;45763846]Unless I'm mistaken isn't this fairly close to being neutral? I though a pH of 7.0 was neutral.[/QUOTE] I think anything above 8.5 is considered extremophile territory so it's nearly up there

[QUOTE=Alice3173;45763846]Unless I'm mistaken isn't this fairly close to being neutral? I though a pH of 7.0 was neutral.[/QUOTE] pH isn't a linear scale. A change in 1 pH unit means that a change in dissociated hydrogen concentration by a factor of 10 has occurred (the amount of dissociated hydrogen in a solution is what determines how acidic something is). There's 10 times as little dissociated hydrogen present at a pH of 8 as there is at a pH of 7. [editline]22nd August 2014[/editline] [QUOTE=Bradyns;45759659]Extremophiles must be so interesting to research. You could never be complacent, and you'd never leave a stone unturned.[/QUOTE] I'm glad there are people out there who have the patience and fine motor skills to work in microbiology labs, because this stuff is sure as hell interesting but fuck doing it myself.

[QUOTE=sltungle;45764452]pH isn't a linear scale. A change in 1 pH unit means that a change in dissociated hydrogen concentration by a factor of 10 has occurred (the amount of dissociated hydrogen in a solution is what determines how acidic something is). There's 10 times as little dissociated hydrogen present at a pH of 8 as there is at a pH of 7.[/QUOTE] Ah, so it's a lot more like how the decibel system works. I wasn't aware of that, thanks for explaining it.

[QUOTE=krail9;45763886]I think anything above 8.5 is considered extremophile territory so it's nearly up there[/QUOTE] I thought the pH scale went up to 14? If 8.5 is considered extremophile then what is 14? Armageddon?

[QUOTE=Ardosos;45764704]I thought the pH scale went up to 14? If 8.5 is considered extremophile then what is 14? Armageddon?[/QUOTE] pH 14 is what you use to get rid of cattle that have died due to an illness, or particularly problematic humans that you never, ever want to be identified in any way, shape or form.

[QUOTE=Ardosos;45764704]I thought the pH scale went up to 14? If 8.5 is considered extremophile then what is 14? Armageddon?[/QUOTE] It can theoretically go beyond 14, but a saturated solution of NaOH (27.75M) has a pH of about 15.4, and it's unlikely that you'd even approach that level in most situations. Even then it's not a particularly awful thing to have around. You wouldn't want to touch it without gloves but it's not that onerous a prospect handling it.