Frozen bug could hold clues about aliens
Herminiimonas glaciei could provide insights into alien life forms
A newly-discovered bug trapped for over 120,000 years under three kilometres of ice could hold vital clues about the existence of alien life forms.
The dormant bacterium was found in Greenland by a team of researchers from Pennsylvania State University who managed to gradually coax it back to life.
They revived the frozen microbe, known as Herminiimonas glaciei, by carefully warming the samples of ice for almost a year.
It is hoped that studying the bacterium will help provide insights into how microorganisms on other planets may survive in similarly harsh conditions.
Jennifer Loveland-Curtze, who led the research team, said: “These extremely cold environments are the best analogues of possible extraterrestrial habitats.
“Studying these bacteria can provide insights into how cells can survive and even grow under extremely harsh conditions, such as temperatures down to -56 degrees celsius, little oxygen, low nutrients, high pressure and limited space.”
In 2000, a team of scientists from West Chester University in the US revived a microbe that had been dormant for 250 million years.
The bacterium was found 2,000-feet below ground in a salt crystal in the New Mexico desert.
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Mohammed Abbasi 