Extremophiles are creatures that thrive in extreme environmental conditions other living things find life-threatening. They exist on Earth and give us science-fiction-wired enthusiasts hope for the discovery of life on other planets.
The weirdness of these extremophiles eases the harsh reality that, yikes, Earth may be an anomaly—that we exist in this great vastness all alone and are merely an accident created by a bunch of random occurrences in the history of our galaxy.
The argument against the possibility of life on other planets usually boils down to the inhospitable nature of such environments. And yet, here on Earth, we have extremophiles who survive and flourish in just such conditions.
The Ocean Worm, an Extremophile
The ocean worm’s, Nereis sandersi, home is located near the Atlantic Ocean’s hydrothermal vents. These vents spout superheated water and dense mineral deposits with temperatures ranging from 140° to 867° Fahrenheit and yet the creature prevails. Isn’t this type of adaptation possible on planets with a similar environment such as the hydrothermals on Earth?
The Red Flat Bark Beetle
The red flat bark beetle, Cucujus clavipes, thrives in arctic conditions by producing antifreeze proteins that stop water molecules from grouping together.
The Desert Ants of the Sahara
In contrast, desert ants of the Sahara, Cataglyphis bicolor, clamor to the surface during the hottest part of the day to feed on those insects unable to withstand the heat and to avoid predators restricted by the temperatures that can be as hot as 140°F.
The Himalayan Jumping Spider
Himalayan jumping spiders, Euophrys omnisuperstes, have adapted to high altitudes. They have been found as 22,000 feet. For a great PBS video of the spiders jumping click here.
The Loricifera
A newly discovered creature—from the loriciferan phylum has been identified as an undescribed species of the genus Spinoloricus. It lives without oxygen or sunlight its entire life and occupies salt-laden waters.
This is possible because they don’t depend on mitochondria for energy. Instead, they use hydrogenosomes, which doesn’t need oxygen to create energy. (ProbeNote: Interestingly, it is readily accepted that hydrogenosomes evolved from mitochondria. So is this critter a more evolved species than humans?)
The Toughest Guy On the Block
Many bacterial species are considered extremophiles because of their ability to adapt to extremes in temperatures, pressure, pH, salinity, and other abiotic factors.
The Deinococcus radiodurans bacterium—which The Guinness Book of World Records labeled the world’s toughest bacterium—can survive a 15,000 gray dose of radiation by repairing its damaged DNA in a few hours. Ten grays would kill a human and over 1,000 grays kill a cockroach. D. radiodurans bacterium can survive cold, dehydration, vacuum and acid which places it in the company of the rare polyextremophiles.
(ProbeNote: Polyextremophiles can survive a variety of environmental extremes and are not considered—by some—to be true extremophiles. Wikipedia differentiates in this way:
Polyextremophiles are not considered extremophilic because they are not adapted to exploit these conditions. This means that their chances of dying increase the longer they are exposed to the extreme environments, whereas true extremophiles thrive in a physically or geochemically extreme condition that would harm most other organisms.
The Water Bear
One of the most incredible creatures, and a polyextremophile, is called a water bear or Tardigrade. (ProbeNote: The name “Tardigrade” bears some resemblance to Dr. Who’s Tardis. And in more ways than just the spelling.)
The water bear, aka moss piglets, are like the superpowers of the extremophiles and polyextremophiles. The tiny—less than a millimeter in size—creature receives the tag for being the most tenacious guy on the planet.
Its evolutionary development has rendered it capable of elaborate dormancy strategies. They can shut down all but the essential biological processes when conditions are not conducive to supporting life.
- They can withstand temperatures from just above absolute zero to just above the boiling point of water.
- Water Bears can tolerate pressures six times greater than those found in the deepest ocean hollows.
- They can defy lethal doses of radiation.
- Tardigrades can go without food or water for years, some say decades. (ProbeNote: One reference stated ten years and another said over 100 years.)
- They can dry out completely—to 3% or less water—replacing the water in their bodies with a sugar called trehalose. Then with a drop of water they can rehydrate, forage, and reproduce.
- And like Dr. Who’s Tardis, the water bear has been to space and survived. (ProbeNote: More on this revelation next blog post.)
ProbeFiling
With all the remarkable and adaptable creatures that we’ve identified on Earth, why are we not pretty certain life exists or did exist on other planets?
Why all the naysayers?
The expeditions we launch to Mars send back images of the planet, yet their mission is not to look for life or even gather specimens, but to see whether conditions were once favorable for life.
Twin landers—Viking 1 and Viking 2—landed on Mars in 1976. Soil was scooped up and experiments run. In one, a belch of a carbon-containing gas was expelled, which seemed to indicate proof of the possibility of life. But NASA’s declared that this was not evidence of life and that the Martian surface could produce the same effect without the aid of microbes.
Is a Meteorite Just a Meteorite?
In 1996, scientists presented evidence of fossil microbes and biochemicals in a meteorite found in the Antarctic. Its origins seemed to be Mars. Believers were questioned and challenged. Non-believers hung tightly to their arguments that the meteorite did not prove Martian life.
There is hope, however, for alien-life-believers. Several missions are in the planning stages for launches in 2020, which will encompass the retrieval of samples from Mars. NASA, Russia—in collaboration with the European Space Agency—and China are among those involved in plans for such a mission.
Other missions are being discussed in addition to Mars to destinations such as to one of Jupiter’s largest moons, Europa, and Saturn’s sixth largest moon, Enceladus.
Why these two moons?
- Europa has a global ocean buried in its depths similar to our Atlantic’s hydrothermal vents.
- Enceladus shoots out large geysers of ice crystals creating the possibility of a probe fly-by and scoop-up sample mission.
For source click here: http://discovermagazine.com/2014/may/15-why-is-et-mia
Worlds of Possibilities for the Open Minded
I’m often amazed by how much weirder the real world is than the stuff that comes pouring out of the brains of science fiction writers. With all the possibilities evident on Earth of creatures adapting to the harshest of environmental conditions, surely other life-forms have adapted in much the same way and inhabit worlds in outer space.
Surely.
Then why all the naysayers?
Maybe, we just haven’t asked the right questions, or been to the right places, or been open-minded enough to allow the possibility.
Or maybe some of us have.
And maybe some of them keep secrets for fear of what the knowledge might unleash.
What is your vote for the existence of life on other planets?
- Definitely
- Maybe
- Don’t think so
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6 replies on “Extremophiles: Creatures With Super Powers.”
To answer your last question: there is absolutely life on other planets. What is it about earth and exceptionalism? Or is it just the US? Its a bit arrogant to think that earth is the only place with “intelligent” life, no?
As for your blog post, which I loved (great pics btw), I think another interesting point would be whether there are already aliens here on earth. How do we know that the Nereis Sandersi is a local, maybe instead a visitor from Saturn’s moon..? The ocean contains something like 99% of the living space on earth, most of which has yet to be explored. Perhaps it is even arrogant to think that we are alone here on earth.
Thanks for the thoughts, I think I’m going to go re-watch The Abyss now. haha
Hi Rockwell—Thank you for commenting. Sorry for the the delayed reply. (I’ve been camping in the wilds near Telluride, Co. Beautiful place.)
How was the re-watch of The Abyss? Love that movie.
You bring up an excellent point and one that wandered around in my head as I wrote the blog post. And yes: how do we know the Nereis Sandersi is local? It so could be an ET as well as the other extremophiles and polyextremophiles.
We don’t know! That’s what makes it so fascinating. But like you, I don’t understand why some Earthlings are so reluctant to embrace the idea that life could exist and/or existed on other planets.
Are they scared of something—Like finding life on another planet might blow a hole in certain modern religions?
No doubt the reluctance to embrace the idea of life outside of earth is fear based. It would certainly change the ideas of many religions and probably weaken the governmental control around the world.
Religion, government, the economy even, are all very precariously balanced on superficial ideals… the fear is that alien life would cause chaos.
But… All great changes are preceded by chaos.
aliens are real end of
Great post. Hadn’t yet seen some of these. Wouldn’t it be an interesting world if they were all scaled up?
😮
Of course other planets have, had, and even will have life.
Thank you very much for the Follow over at The Last Half! Thank you also for a refreshing mind-cleanse after this morning. I was watching a Bill Moyers segment, link provided by the Daily Kos, in which Moyers interviews a 19-yr.-old who’s been politically-battling creationists for two years–wisely and with impressive support, yet fairly unsuccessfully, thus far.
The statistic is cited that, if I recall correctly, one survey indicated 46% of Americans put more faith in faith than evolution. (I’m slightly misrepresenting for the sake of the pun. No matter how poor a pun, I’ll put my best bipedal hairless primate foot forward.)
Where was I? So awkward to comment on these bitsy screens when one types and thinks slowly and tangentially–my sets fail to intersect after a while and there is no hope of ever again finding my way back to the original point. Which reminds me: That was, again…?
–O. Babe
Hi Babe! So thrilled you visited AND commented. And such an enlightening comment. Although? What was it again? 😉 just kiddin’. Hey, I became a big fan of yours today. I found you when you liked the comment I made on a friend’s blog (https://skipmars.wordpress.com/). Your blog made me laugh all morning especially your one about the WordPress Overloads and their arrangement of devastating buttons they can’t lick. Love it. Hope you visit and comment often. If not, I’ll catch you at The Last Half.
(Readers, I am adding Outlier Babe’s The Last Half to my Liebster Blog Award nominations. Her blog is hysterical and informative. Especially how men make boobs grow.)