Recently scientists from the University of Montana University of Montana
“took a tractor convoy 12 days to take the drill and other equipment more than 500 miles over the Ross Ice Shelf to the drilling site from the American research station at McMurdo.” In order to have accurate findings, they made sure to decontaminate all of their equipment to the fullest extent. The scientists found mass amounts of bacteria living in the deep dark depths. They confirmed the bacteria were living by looking at them under a microscope and performing chemical tests which showed they were metabolizing energy and using ATP. There is still research that must be done to confirm what type of bacteria these are.
These findings are relevant because they give scientists a glimpse at possibilities of extraterrestrial life. Ice has been found on some planets and moons, so there is a possibility that if bacteria can live in such icy conditions with no sunlight on earth, they can thrive on other planets. A senior scientist from NASA stated, “If it was using a local energy source, it would be interesting. If it's just consuming organics carried in from elsewhere, it is of much less interest.” It is important to differentiate how they receive food/ energy, because if they are getting it locally it proves these bacteria are self sufficient. This would mean that life could thrive on other planets without our intervention.
I thought this was an interesting article. The author really explained the experiment well, and it was easy to follow.
Gorman, James. "Bacteria Found Deep Under Antarctic Ice, Scientists Say." The New York Times. The New York Times, 07 Feb. 2013. Web. 06 Feb. 2013.
1 comment:
Maxim Izotov
Article review 2/7 (Alina Atayan on bacteria)
Alina did three things very well in her review. First, I thought it was great that she gave a background on previous expeditions. It was really interesting for me to find out that technological difficulties were present before. Second, it was a good thought on her part to describe how frustrating the process was, especially moving the equipment. Last but not least, I found it to be amazing that she concluded her thoughts with this final thought: “There is still research that must be done to confirm what type of bacteria these are.” Otherwise, I would be eager to find out what type of bacteria they found.
Although the review was great, she could have done two things better. First, I would find it helpful is Alina identified what ATP is, since I have no idea and couldn’t really come to a conclusion about that thought. Second and last, I was expecting a more thorough summary of what planets and moons the bacteria were found on, since that would tell me how far from the sun bacteria could actually exist.
Overall, this appealed to me as a breakthrough discovery. No one expected there to be life under sheets and sheets and sheets of ice. Personally, I find it amazing that life could be present at such a location. Other than that, I cannot wait until the bacteria is either identified or recognized as a new type.
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