Scientists Find a Spot Where No Life Can Survive. That's Bad News for Alien Hunters.

[Judi Lynn]

By Yasemin Saplakoglu - Staff Writer 2 days ago



The Dallol hydrothermal pools are harsh environments.
(Image: © Shutterstock)

Unearthly greens and yellows color the scorching-hot landscape surrounding the Dallol volcano in northern Ethiopia. This alien-like world is filled with hydrothermal pools that are some of the most extreme environments on the planet — and some of them seem to be completely devoid of life, according to a new study.

Different life-forms on our planet have adapted to survive under some pretty harsh conditions, places that are superhot, superacidic or supersalty, to name a few, said study senior author Purificación López-García, the research director at the French National Centre for Scientific Research.

But can life survive in a single environment that combines all three conditions, such as in the colorful waters of the Dallol hydrothermal region?

To figure out if this extreme environment oversteps the limits for life on our planet, the researchers sampled a number of brines— or pools of water with high concentrations of salt — in the area. Some were extremely hot, salty and acidic, while others were still very hot and salty but weren't too acidic or basic. The scientists analyzed all the genetic material found in the samples to identify any organisms living there.

More:
https://www.livescience.com/life-not-found-most-extreme-pools-dallol-ethiopia.html

[Skittles]

1. and of course, "life" is defined only in the terms we know of

[Beakybird]

2. Looking back at my time spent in a hot, acidic, salty brine. Believe me. It ain't no life!

[Sinistrous]

3. I wonder if tardigrades could survive in these pools.

Apparently they either cannot or they have not been introduced into them.