Multimedia Gallery
Life Under the Seafloor
Scientists have found that rocks beneath the seafloor are teeming with microbial life. While research has predicted that life could in fact exist in such a cold, dark, rocky environment, scientists really didn't expect to find it thriving at the levels they observed. The findings pose intriguing questions about ocean chemistry and the co-evolution of Earth and life.
This image accompanied NSF press release, "Bacteria 'Feed' on Earth's Ocean-Bottom Crust."
Credit: Nicolle Rager Fuller, National Science Foundation
Images and other media in the National Science Foundation Multimedia Gallery are available for use in print and electronic material by NSF employees, members of the media, university staff, teachers and the general public. All media in the gallery are intended for personal, educational and nonprofit/non-commercial use only.
Images credited to the National Science Foundation, a federal agency, are in the public domain. The images were created by employees of the United States Government as part of their official duties or prepared by contractors as "works for hire" for NSF. You may freely use NSF-credited images and, at your discretion, credit NSF with a "Courtesy: National Science Foundation" notation.
Additional information about general usage can be found in Conditions.
Also Available:
Download the high-resolution JPG version of the image. (1.3 MB)
Use your mouse to right-click (Mac users may need to Ctrl-click) the link above and choose the option that will save the file or target to your computer.