Dothi la m'mphepete mwa miyala m'chigawo chapakati cha Antarctica silinakhalepo ndi tizilombo toyambitsa matenda.
Kwa nthawi yoyamba, asayansi apeza kuti padziko lapansi pano kulibe zamoyo. Dothi limachokera ku zitunda ziwiri zowombedwa ndi mphepo, zamiyala mkati mwa Antarctica, mtunda wa makilomita 300 kuchokera ku South Pole, kumene madzi oundana ambirimbiri amadutsa m’mapiri.
“Anthu akhala akuganiza kuti tizilombo tating’onoting’ono n’ngolimba ndipo titha kukhala kulikonse,” anatero Noah Firer, katswiri wa zamoyo zapayunivesite ya Colorado Boulder amene gulu lake limaphunzira nthaka. Kupatula apo, zamoyo zokhala ndi selo imodzi zapezeka kuti zikukhala m'malo olowera mpweya wa hydrothermal ndi kutentha kopitilira madigiri 200 Fahrenheit, m'nyanja pansi pa theka la kilomita ya ayezi ku Antarctica, ngakhalenso mamita 120,000 pamwamba pa stratosphere ya Dziko Lapansi. Koma patatha chaka cha ntchito, Ferrer ndi wophunzira wake wa udokotala Nicholas Dragon sanapezebe zizindikiro za moyo mu nthaka ya Antarctic yomwe anatolera.
Firer ndi Dragone adaphunzira dothi kuchokera kumapiri 11 osiyanasiyana, kuyimira mikhalidwe yosiyanasiyana. Zomwe zimachokera kumapiri otsika komanso ozizira kwambiri zimakhala ndi mabakiteriya ndi bowa. Koma m’mapiri ena a mapiri aŵiri aatali kwambiri, ouma ndi ozizira kwambiri mulibe zizindikiro za moyo.
"Sitinganene kuti ndi osabala," adatero Ferrer. Akatswiri a tizilombo tosaoneka ndi maso amazolowera kupeza maselo ambirimbiri m’kasupe kakang’ono ka dothi. Choncho, chiwerengero chochepa kwambiri (monga ma cell 100 otheka) akhoza kuthawa kudziwika. "Koma monga tikudziwira, mulibe tizilombo tating'onoting'ono."
Kaya nthaka ina ilibe zamoyo kapena ikapezeka kuti ili ndi maselo otsala, zatsopano zomwe zafalitsidwa posachedwapa m'magazini ya JGR Biogeosciences zingathandize pofufuza zamoyo ku Mars. Nthaka ya ku Antarctic imakhala yowundana kwamuyaya, yodzaza ndi mchere wapoizoni, ndipo sinakhale ndi madzi ambiri amadzimadzi kwa zaka mamiliyoni aŵiri—ofanana ndi nthaka ya ku Martian.
Adasonkhanitsidwa paulendo wothandizidwa ndi National Science Foundation mu Januware 2018 kupita kumadera akutali a mapiri a Transantarctic. Amadutsa mkatikati mwa kontinentiyo, kulekanitsa phiri lalitali lakum’maŵa ndi madzi oundana otsika kumadzulo. Asayansiwo anamanga msasa pa Shackleton Glacier, lamba wonyamula madzi oundana wa makilomita 60 amene amayenda pa phompho la mapiri. Anagwiritsa ntchito ndege za helikoputala kuwulukira kumalo okwera ndi kutolera zitsanzo m’mwamba ndi pansi pa madzi oundana.
M’mapiri ofunda, amvula amene ali m’munsi mwa madzi oundana, ongotsala pang’ono kufika mamita mazana angapo pamwamba pa nyanja, anapeza kuti m’nthakamo munkakhala nyama zazing’ono kuposa njere za sesame: nyongolotsi zazing’onoting’ono, ma tardigrade amiyendo eyiti, ma rotifer ndi nyongolotsi zing’onozing’ono. amatchedwa springtails. Tizilombo ta mapiko. Dothi lopanda mchenga limeneli lili ndi mabakiteriya osakwana 1,000 a kuchuluka kwa mabakiteriya amene amapezeka muudzu wokonzedwa bwino, wokwanira kupereka chakudya kwa tizilombo tating'onoting'ono tomwe timakhala pansi.
Koma zizindikiro za moyo zimenezi zinazimiririka pang’onopang’ono pamene gululo linayendera mapiri aatali kwambiri m’kati mwa madzi oundana. Pamwamba pa madzi oundanawo, anapita kumapiri aŵiri—Mount Schroeder ndi Mount Roberts—omwe ndi otalika mamita oposa 7,000.
Maulendo a ku Schroeder Mountain anali ankhanza, akukumbukira Byron Adams, katswiri wa zamoyo pa Brigham Young University ku Provo, Utah, amene anatsogolera ntchitoyo. Kutentha m'tsiku lino lachilimwe ndi pafupifupi 0°F. Mphepo yamphepoyo inasintha pang’onopang’ono madzi oundana ndi chipale chofewa, n’kusiya mapiri opanda kanthu, kuopseza nthaŵi zonse ku kunyamula ndi kuponya mafosholo a m’munda amene anabweretsa kuti afukule mchengawo. Dzikoli lakutidwa ndi miyala yofiira ya mapiri amene anakokoloka ndi mphepo ndi mvula kwa zaka mazana a mamiliyoni, kuwasiya ali maenje ndi opukutidwa.
Asayansi atanyamula mwalawu, anapeza kuti m’munsi mwake munali mchere wambiri wa mchere wotchedwa perchlorate, chlorate, ndi nitrate. Perchlorates ndi klorate, mchere wowononga dzimbiri womwe umagwiritsidwa ntchito popanga mafuta a rocket ndi bleach wa mafakitale, amapezekanso wochuluka padziko la Mars. Popanda madzi osamba, mchere umachulukana pamapiri owuma a Antarcticwa.
"Zili ngati sampuli pa Mars," Adams adatero. Mukalowetsa fosholo, "mumadziwa kuti ndiwe woyamba kusokoneza nthaka mpaka kalekale - mwina zaka mamiliyoni ambiri."
Ofufuzawo ananena kuti ngakhale pamalo okwera chonchi komanso m’mikhalidwe yovuta kwambiri, angapezebe tizilombo tamoyo m’nthaka. Koma ziyembekezozi zidayamba kuzimiririka kumapeto kwa chaka cha 2018, pomwe Dragon adagwiritsa ntchito njira yotchedwa polymerase chain reaction (PCR) kuti azindikire DNA yaying'ono mu dothi. Chinjoka chinayesa zitsanzo 204 kuchokera kumapiri pamwamba ndi pansi pa madzi oundana. Zitsanzo zochokera kumapiri otsika, ozizira zinatulutsa DNA yambiri; koma zitsanzo zambiri (20%) zochokera kumalo okwera, kuphatikizapo ambiri ochokera ku Mount Schroeder ndi Roberts Massif, sanayesedwe kuti apeze zotsatira zilizonse, kusonyeza kuti anali ndi tizilombo tochepa kwambiri kapena mwina palibe.
Ferrell anati: “Atangoyamba kundionetsa zotsatira, ndinaganiza kuti, ‘Chalakwika. Iye ankaganiza kuti payenera kukhala chinachake cholakwika ndi chitsanzo kapena zipangizo labu.
Dragon ndiye adachita zoyeserera zowonjezera kuti afufuze zizindikiro zamoyo. Ankathira nthaka ndi shuga kuti aone ngati zamoyo zina za m’nthakazo zasintha n’kukhala mpweya woipa. Anali kuyesa kupeza mankhwala otchedwa ATP, amene zamoyo zonse zapadziko lapansi zimagwiritsa ntchito kusunga mphamvu. Kwa miyezi ingapo, adalima dothi m'mitundu yosiyanasiyana yazakudya, kuyesera kukopa tizilombo tating'onoting'ono tomwe tidakhalapo kuti tikule kukhala madera.
"Nick adaponya sinki yakukhitchini pazitsanzo izi," adatero Ferrell. Ngakhale kuti anayesedwa zonsezi, sanapezebe kanthu m’dothi lina. "Ndi zodabwitsa kwambiri."
Jacqueline Gurdial, katswiri wazachilengedwe payunivesite ya Guelph ku Canada, amatcha zotsatira zake kukhala "zokopa," makamaka zoyesayesa za Dragon kuti adziwe zomwe zimakhudza mwayi wopeza tizilombo tating'onoting'ono pamalo ena. Anapeza kuti kukwera kwambiri komanso kuchuluka kwa chlorate ndizomwe zimalosera mwamphamvu za kulephera kuzindikira moyo. "Izi ndi zomwe zapezedwa zosangalatsa kwambiri," adatero Goodyear. "Izi zikutiuza zambiri za malire a moyo Padziko Lapansi."
Sakutsimikiza kuti nthaka yawo ilibe zamoyo, mwina chifukwa cha zomwe adakumana nazo kudera lina la Antarctica.
Zaka zingapo zapitazo, adaphunzira dothi lochokera kumalo omwewo ku Transantarctic Mountains, malo omwe ali pamtunda wa makilomita 500 kumpoto chakumadzulo kwa Shackleton Glacier yotchedwa University Valley yomwe mwina inalibe chinyezi chachikulu kapena kusungunuka kwa kutentha kwa zaka 120,000. Atauika kwa miyezi 20 pa 23°F, kutentha kwanyengo yachilimwe m’chigwacho, nthakayo sinasonyeze kuti kuli moyo. Koma pamene anatenthetsa zitsanzo za nthaka madigiri angapo pamwamba pa kuzizira, ena anasonyeza kukula kwa bakiteriya.
Mwachitsanzo, asayansi apeza kuti maselo a bakiteriya amakhalabe amoyo ngakhale patapita zaka masauzande ambiri m’madzi oundana. Akagwidwa, kagayidwe kake ka maselo kamayenda pang'onopang'ono nthawi miliyoni. Amapita kumalo omwe samakulanso, koma amangokonza zowonongeka za DNA zomwe zimayambitsidwa ndi kuwala kwa cosmic kumalowa mu ayezi. Goodyear akuganiza kuti "opulumuka pang'onopang'ono" awa angakhale omwe adawapeza ku College Valley-akukayikira kuti ngati Dragone ndi Firer adasanthula nthaka yochulukirapo ka 10, mwina adawapeza ku Roberts Massif kapena Schroeder Mountain.
Brent Christner, yemwe amaphunzira za tizilombo toyambitsa matenda ku Antarctic ku yunivesite ya Florida ku Gainesville, akukhulupirira kuti dothi lokwera kwambiri, louma lingathandize kupititsa patsogolo kufufuza kwa moyo ku Mars.
Iye ananena kuti chombo cha m’mlengalenga cha Viking 1 ndi cha Viking 2, chimene chinatera pa Mars mu 1976, chinachita kafukufuku woona za moyo wa munthu pogwiritsa ntchito kafukufuku wa nthaka yotsika pafupi ndi gombe la Antarctica, dera lotchedwa Dry Valleys. Ena mwa dothi limeneli amanyowa ndi meltwater m’chilimwe. Iwo ali osati tizilombo, komanso m'madera ena ting'onoting'ono mphutsi ndi nyama zina.
Mosiyana ndi zimenezo, dothi lapamwamba, louma la Mount Roberts ndi Mount Schroeder lingapereke malo abwino oyesera zida za Martian.
Christner anati: “Ku Mars ndi koipa kwambiri. “Palibe chamoyo Padziko Lapansi chimene chingathe kukhala ndi moyo padziko”—osachepera inchi imodzi kapena ziŵiri. Chombo chilichonse chopita kumeneko kukafunafuna moyo chiyenera kukhala chokonzekera kugwira ntchito m’malo ena ovuta kwambiri pa Dziko Lapansi.
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