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Extreme Shrimp May Hold Clues To Alien Life On Europa
HughPickens.com writes: Scientists at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory are studying a mysterious ecosystem at one of the world's deepest undersea hydrothermal vents to get clues about what life could be like on other planetary bodies, such as Jupiter's icy moon Europa, which has a subsurface ocean. At the vents, tiny shrimp are piled on top of each other, layer upon layer, crawling on rock chimneys that spew hot water. "You go along the ocean bottom and there's nothing, effectively," says Max Coleman. "And then suddenly we get these hydrothermal vents and a massive ecosystem. It's just literally teeming with life." Bacteria, inside the shrimps' mouths and in specially evolved gill covers, produce organic matter that feed the crustaceans. The particular bacteria in the vents are able to survive in extreme environments because of chemosynthesis, a process that works in the absence of sunlight and involves organisms getting energy from chemical reactions. In this case, the bacteria use hydrogen sulfide, a chemical abundant at the vents, to make organic matter. The temperatures at the vents can climb up to a scorching 842 degrees Fahrenheit (450 degrees Celsius), but waters just an inch away are cool enough to support the shrimp. The shrimp are blind, but have thermal receptors in the backs of their heads.
According to the exobiologists, these mysterious shrimps and its symbiotic bacterium may hold clues "about what life could be like on other planetary bodies." It's life that may be similar—at the basic level—to what could be lurking in the oceans of Europa, deep under the icy crust of the Jupiter moon. According to Emma Versteegh "whether an animal like this could exist on Europa heavily depends on the actual amount of energy that's released there, through hydrothermal vents." Nobody is seriously planning a landing mission on Europa yet. But the European Space Agency aims to launch its JUpiter ICy moons Explorer mission (JUICE) to make the first thickness measurements of Europa's icy crust starting in 2030 and NASA also has begun planning a Europa Clipper mission that would study the icy moon while doing flybys in a Jupiter orbit.
According to the exobiologists, these mysterious shrimps and its symbiotic bacterium may hold clues "about what life could be like on other planetary bodies." It's life that may be similar—at the basic level—to what could be lurking in the oceans of Europa, deep under the icy crust of the Jupiter moon. According to Emma Versteegh "whether an animal like this could exist on Europa heavily depends on the actual amount of energy that's released there, through hydrothermal vents." Nobody is seriously planning a landing mission on Europa yet. But the European Space Agency aims to launch its JUpiter ICy moons Explorer mission (JUICE) to make the first thickness measurements of Europa's icy crust starting in 2030 and NASA also has begun planning a Europa Clipper mission that would study the icy moon while doing flybys in a Jupiter orbit.
Most expensive sushi ever. If that doesn't get us off our butts, I don't know what else will.
I find it much more probable that life begins in milder, friendlier conditions and then adapts over time to harsher environments. Of course, everything is relative.
Is that what killed Slashdot Messaging?
Please fix
I'm looking forward to sitting down at a restaurant and ordering an Average Extreme Jumbo Shrimp.
If we stick him inside a small probe and send him to Europa, give him a small laptop with internet from Earth. He will have all the peace and solitude to postulate the universe's greatest mysteries. He'll be famous and contribute direct from probe to Slashdot servers, Dice you stand to make millions and millions. Long live the audience.
There is no reason for me to sign in, so I shall post AC until it is fixed.
Thank you
Extremely large Shrimp...I hope Europa has a drive up window...I hate getting out of my spaceship I also hate the idea of being the meal for an extremely LARGE Shrimp.
Must resist temptation to make fission chips joke.
Watch this Heartland Institute video
When the recent 'landers' reached Mars, suspicion turned to the lack of microscopes amongst the range of 'life detecting' systems carried by the devices. NASA at first panicked, and then realised they could describe the macro-cameras used to study geological specimens as 'microscopes', and that the betas would be dumb enough to buy this explanation.
Humanity is run by the big organised churches- in the West the Judaic churches of Islam, Modern Christianity (nothing to do with the original Christianity of the original followers of Jesus) and Judaism. The elites at the tops of these churches have absolute dominance in leading industrialised nations, especially the USA.
Now the churches are still highly troubled by the impact on the dumbed down sheeple they rule over as to the impact of 'proof' of 'extraterrestrial' life. They have yet to be convinced that such a revelation would NOT end the rule by organised 'religion'. Those at the TRUE top of NASA answer to the leaders of these churches.
There are NO MICROSCOPES ON MARS because actual images of micro-organisms would end all debate about the presence of life. The best science/engineering student in ANY US high-school could design a microscope-based instrumentation system for any Mars lander at vastly lower cost than any of the sensor systems currently carried by these probes. Yet NASA pays millions of dollars to PR agencies to troll appropriate forums with 'proof' as to why microscopes would be 'useless' , and yet (in a totally perverse logic) are present on the landers anyway.
Anyone with any decent science skills KNOWS the original Mars Landers of the last century proved the presence of life on Mars with their chemistry sets- but the consequence was a massive FUD campaign denying the results of the experiments.
The microscopy of Hooke changed the world centuries back. NASA claims doing no more than Hooke was able to do with the most primitive equipment is beyond the possibility of modern space engineering- and has a legion of trolls to back up this nonsense (watch the responses to this post).
You betas are told on forums like this one that rationality rules the world- nothing could be further from the truth. Internet science outlets aimed at BETAS are about control, not knowledge. You are told NEVER to look at the men behind the curtain at NASA, but instead to empathise with the low level engineers and scientists that work there- an old psychological trick. Engineers and scientists, by and large, have the very opposite of forceful personalities. They are rarely outspoken, and almost never dare go against their bosses. If the agenda of those that employ them is dubious, the science always loses out.
We KNOW as an absolute fact, that vast numbers of Earth life types survive all aspects of the space 'vacuum' found in our Solar System, and thus can easily seed suitable extra-terrestrial eco-systems if given the chance to travel. We KNOW, as an absolute fact, that meteor collisions and volcanic eruptions send matter from one planetary body to another in our Solar System. Not one ALPHA scientist living who has considered the issue doubts we will find extra-terrestrial life in many places within our Solar System as a consequence- with the greater likelihood that the genetic basis of such life will be remarkably similar.
A standard culture dish on Mars observed by a standard microscope would already have proven the presence of life there beyond the doubt of even the simplest-minded visitor to this site. This is the EXACT reason NASA has refused to carry out such an obvious test. Meanwhile every single politician in the US Congress will vote to give absolute support to every atrocity carried out by Israel- continuing the foul, depraved dominance of vile organised religion over the affairs of Mankind.
It is deemed too hard to sell the idea of the 'chosen people' and the 'master race' and 'mass murder in the name of god' if sheeple wake up one day and find themselves looking at microscope photographs from Mars showing actual living organisms. The entire upper management of NASA supported the recent Holocaust in Gaza. Either organised religion is dominant, or science- but NEVER both.
Well, we know where the dophins are heading.
This is something trying to build a hypothesis on a theory that has no evidence at all. Sure, I find it as interesting as most people in terms of discussing possibilities, but this is dreaming and not "science". Anyone discussing life off of our own Earth needs lots of research.. like namely finding life so we could possibly begin to formulate a hypothesis on it's origin.
I actually suspect that the majority of life - and intelligent life - in the universe is probably ocean-based. If ever space aliens visit us, unlike the movies, I suspect their spaceships may be more likely to be like sealed aquariums than an air-breathing setup. I've never seen this idea reflected in science fiction though.
Look, I am honestly not trying to be a Debbie Downer on you, but you are attempting to critique someone's imagination with your own imagination. Dreaming and imagining are good things, and we need them. Dream, write about your dreams, and make a billion dollars in book sales. Just don't confuse imagination with facts and attempt to "correct" other people's imaginations with your own..
-The wise argue that there are few absolutes, the fool argues that there are no probabilities.
We must colonize Europa with a hybrid human shrimp species.
WOW. These people can't do shit. The only thing NASA does is come up with more sci-fi and fairy tales than actual output. I want some of those drugs and that $$$ those people are getting to make up fiction.
"Extreme Shrimp" is going to be my next band name.
Oh, no! You have walked into the slavering fangs of a lurking grue!
would go really good with the extreme fajitas at Chotcksky's.
I saw Extreme Shrimp back in the '80s. Opened for Blondie and Television at CBGB. Neo-punk band, ahead of their day. Great times, those.