Life as we know it doesn’t exactly thrive in the Dead Sea. No fish have evolved to put up with the notoriously salty waters. But weird new forms of microbial life have been discovered inhabiting a network of massive craters at the bottom of the Dead Sea.
A diverse mixture of sun-worshipping and sulphide-munching bacteria have not only adapted to living in super-saline conditions but also cope with the sporadic influx of freshwater bubbling up through underground springs.
And as for the people who made these ground-breaking discoveries, they were the first scientific team brave enough to go scuba diving in the choking, eye-stinging, murky Dead Sea waters… and think of all the weight they needed to get down in that salty, buoyant water.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHLiobkTUd0&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]
Read more at National Geographic News.
Leave a Reply