Oldest Organisms on Earth Could Survive on Mars: Microorganisms Brave Harsh Environment

First Posted: May 20, 2014 08:14 AM EDT
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Scientists have been searching for life on Mars for years. Now, they're taking a new approach. They've found that methanogens, which are some of the simplest and oldest organisms on Earth, could actually survive within the harsh conditions on Mars.

Methanogens are microorganisms in the domain Archaea. They use hydrogen as their main energy source and employ carbon dioxide as their carbon source in order to metabolize and produce methane. These microorganisms can be found within swamps, marshes and within the guts of cattle, termites and other herbivores. Because they're anaerobic, they don't require oxygen and because they're non-photosynthetic, they could exist in darker conditions.

Intrigued by these tiny creatures, scientists wondered if they could potentially survive on another planet-namely, Mars. The researchers subjected two species of methanogens to Martian conditions, which included a rigorous freeze-thaw cycle that are below the organisms' ideal growth temperatures. It turns out that, surprisingly, the microorganisms thrived.

"The low temperature on Mars inhibited their growth," said Mickol in a news release. "Once they got back to a warm temperature, they were able to grow and metabolize again. I wanted to see if these cold temperatures would kill them, or if they were able to survive and adapt."

The findings show that it's possible that organisms can survive on Mars. That said, there's no guarantee that there's life on the Red Planet today. Even so, this new research reveals that at least some forms of life can endure the harsh conditions, and may offer a possible explanation for the methane in the Martian atmosphere.

"The surface temperature on Mars varies widely, often ranging between minus 90 degrees Celsius and 27 degrees Celsius over one Martian day," said Rebecca Mickol, one of the researchers, in a news release. "If any life were to exist on Mars right now, it would at least have to survive that temperature range. The survival of these two methanogen species exposed to long-term freeze/thaw cycles suggests methanogens could potentially inhabit the subsurface of Mars."

The findings were presented at the 2014 General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology in Boston. 

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