Futurity.org » hot springs

New hot spring may predict volcano blasts

Tim Green-U. Texas — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 19:04:52 +0000

U. TEXAS-AUSTIN (US) — Scientists have discovered a new type of hot spring, a “terrestrial smoker,” along the banks of a volcanic lake in the Philippines.

These “terrestrial smokers” are cousins to submarine black smokers, hydrothermal vents on the seafloor that spew plumes of hot, nutrient-rich water and often support rich communities of life.

Geothermal enzyme likes it hot, hot, hot

Robert Sanders-UC Berkeley — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 21:39:29 +0000

UC BERKELEY (US) — A hot spring microbe that happily chomps on plant material with temperatures near the boiling point contains an enzyme that could be used in the production of biofuels.

The microbe’s cellulose-digesting enzyme, called a cellulase, is most active at a record 109 degrees Celsius (228 degrees Fahrenheit), significantly above the 100℃ (212℉) boiling point of water.

Are heat-loving bacteria the key to biofuels?

Tim Green-U. Texas — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 17:12:33 +0000

U. TEXAS-AUSTIN (US)—A bacteria that lives in hot springs in Japan might help solve an age-old evolutionary mystery—and break a bottleneck in producing a fuel of the future.

Biochemists Alan Lambowitz and Georg Mohr began investigating Thermosynechococcus elongatus, a cyanobacterium that can survive at temperatures up to 150 degrees Fahrenheit, after they noticed an unusually high percentage of the bacteria’s genetic sequence was composed of elements known as group II introns.

Life thrived in early Earth’s cooler temps

Sherylon Carroll-Texas A&M — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 18:12:50 +0000

The cooler temperatures on early Earth mean that conditions for life were much easier, and that life that did exist at the time was not under as much stress as previously believed. Geobiologist Mike Tice says the situation could be compared to the geysers currently found in Yellowstone National Park. The hundreds of hot spring pools in the park, such as the one pictured above, vary considerably in temperature.

STANFORD/TEXAS A&M/YALE (US)—Billions of years ago, the Earth’s climate was far cooler—perhaps by more than 50 degrees than previously believed—which could mean conditions were more conducive for life all over the planet, new findings suggests.

A team of researchers examined rocks from the Buck Reef Chert in South Africa that are known to be about 3.4 billion years old, among the oldest ever discovered, and found features in them that are consistent with formation at water temperatures significantly lower than previous studies had suggested.