Pillow lavas as a habitat for microbial life

Authors: Furnes, Harald¹; Banerjee, Neil R.²; Staudigel, Hubert³; Muehlenbachs, Karlis⁴

Source: Geology Today, Volume 23, Number 4, July/August 2007 , pp. 143-146(4)

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Abstract:

The upper oceanic crust consists predominantly of pillow lavas that, soon after their eruption, are colonized by microbes when the ambient temperature ameliorates. During the process of microbial interaction with the glassy rims of pillows several types of bio-traces are generated, of which micro-textures are the most spectacular. Microbial textures are most useful for mapping the depth of the oceanic biosphere, and in the search for the earliest life on Earth.

Document Type: Research article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2451.2007.00622.x

Affiliations: 1: Centre for Geobiology & Department of Earth Science, University of Bergen, 5007 Bergen, Norway, Email: Harald.furnes@geo.uib.no 2: Department of Earth Sciences, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, N6A 5B7, Canada 3: Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, La Jolla, CA 92093-0225, USA 4: Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2E3, Canada

Publication date: 2007-07-01