Mysterious life forms discovered in centuries old Hawaiian lava caves

Hundreds of years ago, the volcanic processes that created the islands of Hawaii also formed a network of underground tunnels and caves.

They’re cold, dark and full of toxic gases and minerals. So, pretty much inhospitable to most forms of life.

However, scientists have discovered these volcanic vents actually contain sprawlingly complex colonies of microbes.

These are the smallest known living organisms on Earth and we really don’t know much about them at all.

In fact, estimates suggest that 99.999 per cent of all microbe species remain unknown. As a result, some refer to these mysterious life forms as ‘dark matter’.

Yet they still make up a huge amount of Earth’s biomass.

What’s got the experts so interested in Hawaii’s lava caves is that the conditions there are as close as you might get to those of the Mars or other distant planets.

And if microbes can survive in these 600 – 800 year old lava tubes, we might just find some on Mars at some stage.

SOURCE

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