Spacecraft are assembled in specialized “cleanrooms” that are designed to avoid contamination from dust and microorganisms. But bacteria called extremophiles have genetic components that allow them to ...

Beneath our feet, beyond the reach of sunlight, and buried in the most unforgiving corners of the planet, an unseen world thrives. Though these environments may seem desolate, and devoid of warmth, ...

The microorganisms lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on 25 July 2019, headed for the International Space Station, some 400 kilometres above. Their mission: to boldly mine basalt, in low Earth ...

Conservation biologists propose a daunting task: protecting Earth’s diversity of bacteria and other microbes. By Carl Zimmer Hundreds of scientists have joined together to save a group of species from ...

In the oceans and on land, scientists are discovering rare, transitional organisms that bridge the gap between Earth’s simplest cells and today’s complex ones.

Microbial communities, though invisible to the naked eye, are vitally important to planetary health and to Earth’s ecosystems. But they are often neglected in conservation strategies. Like other ...

With so many coral reefs bleaching and pangolins being poached, it may seem tone-deaf to call for the conservation of species that are too small to see with the naked eye. But that’s exactly what the ...

Scientists discovered that wrinkled rocks in Morocco were formed by deep sea microbes that survived without sunlight.

To build a spacecraft, you need an extremely clean construction zone. That’s essential if you’re sending a robot to another world to search for signs of microscopic alien life. One wouldn’t want to ...

Learn more about the hunt for bacteria on Mars and how astronauts will need to make sure they aren't bringing any dormant bacteria with them to the Red Planet. Bacteria can lie dormant for long ...