New microbes that live without light or oxygen discovered
Q. A global team of researchers have found new micro-organisms exist under the biosphere of the planet in the absence of which elements?- Published on 17 Feb 16a. Light
b. Oxygen
c. Carbon
d. Both a and b
ANSWER: Both a and b
A global team of researchers have found new microbes that make a living within the deep subsurface of the planet in the absence of light or oxygen. Scientists hold that these organisms can survive many kilometres under the Earth’s surface using CO to gain energy. Microbes seen in the microscope have been named "Hadesarchaea", after the Greek god of the underworld. Researchers first discovered the organism from the South African gold mine at over 3 km. These microbes are located in considerably different aquatic and terrestrial environments whereby the deep mud of the temperate estuary in North Carolina was one while the hot springs at Wyoming’s Yellowstone National Park was another. Microbes living under the surface of the earth remain an important area of exploration. Hadesarchaea belong to the group of micro-organisms called the archaea. The latter group of microbes was discovered 40 years ago by American biologist Carl Woese.
