Microbes Discovered Deep in Ocean Crust

Using a giant straw to suck samples from beneath the ocean floor, oceanographers have found a thriving microbial zoo living deep within the ocean crust.

Fluid collected from below the surface was chemically distinct from seawater and contained a variety of microbes, said University of Hawaii oceanographer James P. Cowen. The ecosystem has not been studied before because of the difficulty of reaching ocean crust fluids.