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Each year, we see the awe-inspiring power that nature possesses. On the other hand, we rarely think about the organisms that inhabit some of the harshest environments on Earth, and how they’ve adapted to survive. Join us to see how scientists investigate the most extreme environments on this planet to better understand natural phenomena and what form extra-terrestrial life could potentially take.
Life in the Deep
Dr Sophie Nixon
(NERC Research Fellow)
The ground deep beneath your feet may not seem a particularly comfortable place to
live. Yet life exists as deep into the subsurface as the highest mountains on
Earth are tall. These microbes live life in the slow lane, eking out a living
in cracks within rocks. That is until us humans get involved. In this talk you
will join me on a journey to the deep biosphere, touring the depths of the
oceans and continents, and even habitats us humans created in our hunger for
resources. These extreme environments help us define limits to life on Earth,
and may even guide the search for life elsewhere.
live. Yet life exists as deep into the subsurface as the highest mountains on
Earth are tall. These microbes live life in the slow lane, eking out a living
in cracks within rocks. That is until us humans get involved. In this talk you
will join me on a journey to the deep biosphere, touring the depths of the
oceans and continents, and even habitats us humans created in our hunger for
resources. These extreme environments help us define limits to life on Earth,
and may even guide the search for life elsewhere.
Lava Lakes, Rivers and Fountains
Matt Varnam
(PhD student)
Shimmering lakes, meandering rivers and gushing fountains may not sound like typical volcanic features. Usually volcanoes conjure thoughts of thundering explosions and towering ash clouds. At some locations on Earth, such as Kīlauea in Hawaii, molten rock can reach the surface without a violent eruption. Here, lava can ooze, pour and flow like any other liquid. What makes this lava and the locations it is found special? How do these flows compare to the behaviour of water? And what can volcano observatories entrusted with monitoring a volcano’s activity do with this information?
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