Methane-Based Single-Celled Organism

Imagine a tiny, single-celled organism drifting in an orange-yellow ocean—as if a microscopic blob were floating in a lake of natural gas. Wrapped in a see-through membrane, this creature undulates gently, propelled by whip-like flagella, and feeds on the chemicals dissolved in its alien environment. Recent spacecraft findings and laboratory experiments suggest that such “methanogens” … Read more