Microbes discovered living beneath earth by deepest marine drill

The International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) has discovered microbes living 2,400m beneath the seabed off Japan. It was presented at the America Geophysical Union Fall Meeting after the samples were analyzed, which were taken from 2,446m of rock under the seafloor by Chikyu ship.
Key discovery
It was revealed life exists deep beneath the seabed in the form of tiny, single celled organisms/microbes despite having no light, no oxygen, barely any water and very limited nutrients, thrived in such depth beneath the earth.
They survive in this harsh environment mainly on a low calorie diet of hydrocarbon compounds and have a very slow metabolism.

About IODP Expedition

The IODP Expedition 337 took place in 2012 off the coast of Japan’s Shimokita Peninsula in the northwestern Pacific.
In this expedition Japan’s Chikyu ship having a monster drill penetrated a record-breaking 2,446 m of rock under the seafloor and samples were collected. These samples were taken from the ancient coal bed system that lies at this depth, and later were analyzed. It should be also noted that this Japan’s Chikyu ship has the ability to drill deep into the Earth’s crust.

Month: Current Affairs - December, 2014