Subterranean Microbes: Unveiling Earth's Hidden Biosphere

A recent discovery of a vast underground biosphere that challenges our understanding of life on Earth. Scientists have found that 15-23 billion tonnes of carbon exist in microorganisms living up to 5-10 kilometers below Earth's surface—nearly twice the biomass of all humans. Unlike surface life that depends on photosynthesis, these subsurface organisms survive on chemical energy from rock-water interactions, with some dividing only once every 10,000 years and consuming almost immeasurably small amounts of energy. This "shadow biosphere" has profound implications for carbon cycle models, climate science, mineral formation, and astrobiology. Researchers have discovered over 6,000 previously unknown microbial species with novel metabolic pathways that can transform inorganic carbon compounds without sunlight and potentially influence geological processes. These findings offer biotechnological opportunities and fundamentally challenge our definition of life itself, suggesting that life may exist in forms and environments far different from those previously imagined throughout the universe.

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