New species of Antarctic sea anemone could hint at alien life
Source: io9.com
A research robot out on a routine test inadvertently stumbled upon a never-before-seen species of sea anemone living upside down in Antarctic ice. It’s a remarkable discovery that could hint at the kind of life that might be found in the subsurface oceans of Europa.
The tiny sea anemones were discovered by a cylindrical robot called SCINI (Submersible Capable of under Ice Navigation and Imaging). The bot, which is part of the National Science Foundation’s ANDRILL Antarctic drilling program, was sent down a hole drilled through 885 feet (270 meters) of the Antarctic Ross Ice Shelf.
Almost immediately, SCINI detected signs of the all-new ecosystem, one containing the opaque-white, ethereal anemones, now named Edwardsiella andrillae. They’re just 2.5-to-3 centimeters in size when contracted, and about four times longer when relaxed. Each of them have around 20-to-24 tentacles. The researchers aren’t sure how the anemone anchor themselves to the ice, how they reproduce, or how they’re able to withstand the frigid temperatures. Some tens of thousands of these anemones were seen clinging to the bottom of the ice layer.
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In addition to the sea anemone, SCINI discovered fish that swim upside down (with the ice acting as a floor), polychaete worms, amphipods, and a bizarre (and still unidentified organism) the researchers are calling the "egroll;" it’s shaped like a tiny cylinder that bumped along the ice among the anemones.
Read the full article at: io9.com
