Earth's Mysterious 'Deep Biosphere' May Harbor Millions of Undiscovered Species

Anton Tarazi

AP Biology

Mr. Ippolito

12/11/18

Specktor, Brandon. “Earth's Mysterious 'Deep Biosphere' May Harbor Millions of Undiscovered Species.” NBCNews.com, NBCUniversal News Group, 11 Dec. 2018, www.nbcnews.com/mach/science/earth-s-mysterious-deep-biosphere-may-harbor-millions-undiscovered-species-ncna946531.

In his article “Earth's Mysterious 'Deep Biosphere' May Harbor Millions of Undiscovered Species,” Brandon Specktor discusses the abundance of life that is existing under the surface of the Earth. While we are well-aware of all the life that exists on the surface of this planet and the upper part of the oceans, there is actually so much more hidden in the depths of both land and sea. Scientists at the Deep Carbon Observatory (DCP) are digging and digging to find new life forms in the dark, seemingly inhospitable land under our feet that is actually teeming with microorganisms and has biodiversity rivaling that at the surface. There is an estimated 17 to 25 billion tons of organic carbon underground, approximately 300 to 400 times as much carbon biomass as there is on the surface, and houses 70% of the Earth’s microorganisms. These microorganisms are challenging traditional beliefs of where life can exist, some thriving at temperatures as high as 121 ℃.

The realization of how much life is yet to be discovered in the depths of our planet is quite startling. There are perhaps millions of new species lurking beneath our feet, life forms that have never before been observed, bacteria with unique characteristics, or perhaps diseases that should never reach the surface. By studying these life forms, scientists will learn more about life in extreme conditions, expanding our knowledge of how creatures survive and flourish in these environments. For instance studying the organisms underground can help scientists establish better criteria for determining whether other planets can support life.

I felt that this article was brief but did not leave out any information. Specktor did a good job of describing the extent of the life that exists in the deep biosphere by giving statistics using multiple comparisons to the ecosystem aboveground. For instance Specktor says, “Data from these sites suggest that the world's deep biosphere spans roughly 500 million cubic miles (2.3 billion cubic kilometers) — about twice the volume of all the Earth's oceans — and houses about 70 percent of all the planet's bacteria and single-cell archaea.” He gives his audience both raw numbers and a comparison so we can put the immensity of the life underground into perspective. One weakness that I found in the article is that the nature of the life underground was not thoroughly described. While Specktor did say that there were millions of undiscovered species of bacteria and single celled archaea, he did not say much about them beyond that. While of course we do not know much about these bacteria, it would be worth addressing these questions, such as are they pathogenic? Or what are their similarities and differences to the bacteria we are familiar with? Other than this, though, it was a well-written article that brought to light the underground life of the dark.