In a strange incident, a group of geologists is planning to open an 830 million-year-old rock salt crystal. It is expected to contain ancient microorganisms and they may still be alive. The discovery of this ancient crystal was first announced by researchers from the Geological Society of America earlier this month.
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They explained that by using a selection of imaging techniques they had managed to discover tiny remnants of prokaryotic and algal life. This has been preserved within tiny pockets of fluid in the crystal for millions of years. The organisms were found inside microscopic bubbles, known as fluid inclusions. As per scientists, they could serve as microhabitats for the tiny colonies.
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Kathy Benison, a geologist from the West Virginia University and author of the study, in an interview with NPR explained, “There are little cubes of the original liquid from which that salt grew. And the surprise for us is that we also saw shapes that are consistent with what we would expect from microorganisms. And they could be still surviving within that 830-million-year-old preserved microhabitat.” She talked about how her team planned to open up the crystal.
Bonnie Baxter, a biologist at Westminster College in Salt Lake City, was not involved in the study but did give her thoughts on the subject. She said that these findings were not just a major step in studying the origins of life on Earth, but have also opened the door to finding life on other planets.
As per Kathy even though opening this crystal sounds interesting, it is more like a sci-fi horror film. She ensures that it will be carried out with caution. “It does sound like a really bad B-movie, but there is a lot of detailed work that’s been going on for years to try to figure out how to do that in the safest possible way,” she explained.
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If this turns out to be successful, it could further help in the search for alien life. This is because scientists will be able to prove that life can survive for hundreds of millions of years if preserved properly.
NOTE – This article was originally published in news18 and can be viewed here
