Posted on 11/19/2010 1:25:40 PM PST by Fractal Trader
IT'S crawling with life down there. A remote expedition to the deepest layer of the Earth's oceanic crust has revealed a new ecosystem living over a kilometre beneath our feet. It is the first time that life has been found in the crust's deepest layer, and an analysis of the new biosphere suggests life could exist lower still.
On a hypothetical journey to the centre of the Earth starting at the sea floor, you would travel through sediment, a layer of basalt, and then hit the gabbroic layer, which lies directly above the mantle. Drilling expeditions have reached this layer before, but as the basalt is difficult to pierce it happens rarely.
To facilitate the task, the Integrated Ocean Drilling Programme set its sights on the Atlantis Massif. [SNIP] A team led by Stephen Giovannoni of Oregon State University in Corvallis drilled down to 1391 metres, where temperatures reach 102 °C.
There, they found communities of bacteria that were sparse but widespread. The type of bacteria they found came as a surprise to Giovannoni, who has previously found micro-organisms living in the basalt layer. "We expected to find similar organisms in the deeper layer," he says. "But actually it was very different."
One key difference was that archaea were absent in the gabbroic layer. Also, genetic analysis revealed that unlike their upstairs neighbours, many of the gabbroic bugs had evolved to feed off hydrocarbons like methane and benzene. [SNIP]
"This deep biosphere is a very important discovery," says Rolf Pedersen of the University of Bergen, Norway. He points out that the reactions that produce oil and gas abiotically inside the crust could happen in the mantle, meaning life may be thriving deeper yet.
(Excerpt) Read more at newscientist.com ...
And this deep, ¨abiotic¨ oil came from what type of rock structure? Even without knowing I´d say it´s a 99.9% certainty they´ve tapped a sedimentary unit.
I have Gold´s book on hold at my library. Though I doubt it´ll sway me. But we´ll see.
If life can exist in these deep anaerobic levels, it certainly does seem plausible that it can exist in non-Earth planetoids, planets and moons.
Hoe will the discovery of life elsewhere affect Man’s own story of his existence?
I personally don't think that scientific discovery of life off the planet Earth would embarrass cultures or religions whose story of Mankind began including the phrase 'Let There Be Light', but those Creational stories dealing with Mankind springing to life from the shell on the back of a giant sea turtle or the falling leaves of the Five World Trees or even Zeus' orders to Prometheus may be looked upon with some healthy skepticism.
Mere discovery of extraterrestrial microbes wouldn't automatically invalidate the story of Brahma springing forth from a lotus flower in Vishnu's navel, I don't think, since the story is so abstract as to not necessarily run afoul of science.
I hate to sound like I'm making a dodge or an apology here, but I've always thought that 'Let There Be Light' perfectly walks hand in hand with the modern scientific theory of the creation of the Universe, right down to the very first instant.
Scientifically, I defer to everything that Einstein -- may he rest in peace -- said about religion with nothing more to add. Shalom.
A conclusion he arrived at by using a special ALGORITHM written by one of his climate scientists.
What about our water? No matter how much we drink, I don't see the ocean level going down.
As far as igneous rocks, it is unlikely that the liquid state of oil would be found in them. Now, if you take oil, and subject it to enough heat and pressure, you get a diamond. So... even though it might be very difficult to get it out, even something as solid as a diamond may be made of the very molecules that were oil. If oil were anywhere near a volcano, the oil would be turned into something else. Since igneous rocks are the results of this type of uprising from the surface, and explosions, and oil is usually found deep underground, that may be why the two aren't found together.
Or gills.
It would be quite interesting if it turned out that HEAVEN was 'down there' (center of Earth), and HELL was... up here.
Yes. Like a giant juicer, it squeezes the juice out of everything, which the bugs and microbials reduce to various simple hydrocarbons, and congeals and pools up. Some gets sealed in between nice leakproof layers, some not.
BUT, the mantle/crust interactions, with high temps/pressures, and a variety of molten matter can also give off hydrocarbons which would be driven upward, and pool under various non porous rock.
SO, I don't think it's one way or the other for oil creation. I think it's both.
It is unlikely that all the rocks will erode into the sea. Just as earth is being worn down, it is also being built up at earthquake fault lines, and by volcanoes. The Aleutian chain of islands is very young, so is Hawaii, and Iceland The Himalayan Mountains are also very young, and were caused when India “slamed” into Asia, I think around 40 million yers ago. The Rocky Mts. and the Andies are older, and the Appalacians are much older, maybe 300 million years.
Since new species evolve on the average every 5 million years, humans will have either advanced to an unimaginable degree, or be completely gone like the dinosaurs, but the creatures who are around if the earth ever wears down will absolutely not be us.
Yet there is no doubt that biological organisms can manufacture oil as a byproduct.
Not only is there oil at different depths (because it is from different sources), but the oil is different.
Because one is created by biological process, the other is created by subsurface temps/pressures, and matter in a state we cannot even define as of yet.
THE KEY to understanding the abiotic process and it's validity, is to understand WHY the Earth generates oil.
See... that's what I call 'thinking outside the box'.
Or, in this case, 'inside'.
Maybe they eat it.
As Humans our function on this planet is to provide waste for bacteria to live on.
I would like to welcome our Bacteria Masters from the Deep.
All HAIL the BM.
On Titan, Acetylene is one of the most popular drinks at the bars.
Thank you , sir.
Winner of the thread.
*shudder*
Crikey! I’m not dyin’, then!
:o])
Thanks!
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