Life

We keep finding life thriving under conditions we’d previously ruled out. The latest example comes from studies of rock cores drilled from the floor of the Indian Ocean, where microbes were discovered alive and well under almost half a mile of rock.

Organic compounds have been discovered on Mars in recent years. A new study examines the different ways that one type in particular, thiophene, may have formed, and intriguingly one of the most plausible scenarios involves ancient microbial life.

Scientists have discovered a full, previously-unknown protein inside a meteorite for the first time. Named hemolithin, the new protein contains iron and lithium and may play an important role in seeding life on habitable planets like Earth.

Astronomers have analyzed the atmosphere of a large exoplanet and found that it could have liquid water – and so possibly life – on its surface. This new study adds weight to the idea that habitable exoplanets don’t have to be strictly Earth-sized.

New research has shed light on how nuclear war could seriously alter the chemistry of Earth’s oceans, and in so doing damage the life that dwells within. The scientists used an advanced climate model to predict a range of nuclear scenarios.

Tardigrades are well-known for being one of the hardiest animals on the planet, but even they have their limits. New research has shown that they could be more susceptible to climate change than previously thought.

The line between robots and living organisms is beginning to blur. Researchers at the University of Vermont and Tufts University have now essentially created new creatures from frog cells, complete with programmable behaviors.

Phosphorous is one of the six key chemical ingredients of life, yet its scarcity raises the question of how early Earth supplied this essential element. A new study has now provided a possible explanation.

Enceladus’ unique "tiger stripe" fissures have long been something of a mystery. Why do these distinctive formations only exist at Enceladus’ south pole? Why they are so evenly spaced, and why they haven’t simply closed up or frozen over?

Two new studies are offering insights into the long-term effects of intermittent fasting on human health. The research suggests fasting for just one day a month, over many years, can lengthen lifespan and enhance heart health – but there are caveats.

The latest ingredients of life to be discovered off-world are certain bio-essential sugars, which have now been found in meteorites. This could lend weight to the idea that meteorite impacts are responsible for the origin of life on Earth.

A new Japanese study simulated interstellar clouds of dust and gas, and managed to produce some of the building blocks of DNA.