Tiny creatures that can “eat” pollution and generate electricity in the process have been captured for the first time.
Scientists trekked into the depths of Yellowstone National Park to extract these bacteria, which are adapted to living in geysers and hot springs that can reach over 90C.
The so-called “electrogenic” microbes were targeted due to their ability to produce power, which experts hope could be harnessed in the future to drive devices.
However, publishing their findings in the Journal of Power Sources, the scientists admitted this could be tricky because of the extreme environments the bacteria lives in, which is why they had to test their abilities in the field.
“This was the first time such bacteria were collected in situ in an extreme environment like an alkaline hot spring,” said Abdelrhman Mohamed, a PhD student at Washington State University who led the research.
1/18 Fabric that changes according to temperature created
Scientists at the University of Maryland have created a fabric that adapts to heat, expanding to allow more heat to escape the body when warm and compacting to retain more heat when cold
Faye Levine, University of Maryland
2/18 Baby mice tears could be used in pest control
A study from the University of Tokyo has found that the tears of baby mice cause female mice to be less interested in the sexual advances of males
Getty
3/18 Final warning to limit “climate catastrophe”
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has issued a report which projects the impact of a rise in global temperatures of 1.5 degrees Celsius and warns against a higher increase
Getty
4/18 Nobel prize for evolution chemists
The nobel prize for chemistry has been awarded to three chemists working with evolution. Frances Smith is being awarded the prize for her work on directing the evolution of enzymes, while Gregory Winter and George Smith take the prize for their work on phage display of peptides and antibodies
Getty/AFP
5/18 Nobel prize for laser physicists
The nobel prize for physics has been awarded to three physicists working with lasers. Arthur Ashkin (L) was awarded for his “optical tweezers” which use lasers to grab particles, atoms, viruses and other living cells. Donna Strickland and Gérard Mourou were jointly awarded the prize for developing chirped-pulse amplification of lasers
Reuters/AP
6/18 Discovery of a new species of dinosaur
The Ledumahadi Mafube roamed around 200 million years ago in what is now South Africa. Recently discovered by a team of international scientists, it was the largest land animal of its time, weighing 12 tons and standing at 13 feet. In Sesotho, the South African language of the region in which the dinosaur was discovered, its name means “a giant thunderclap at dawn”
Viktor Radermacher / SWNS
7/18 Birth of a planet
Scientists have witnessed the birth of a planet for the first time ever.
This spectacular image from the SPHERE instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope is the first clear image of a planet caught in the very act of formation around the dwarf star PDS 70. The planet stands clearly out, visible as a bright point to the right of the center of the image, which is blacked out by the coronagraph mask used to block the blinding light of the central star.
ESO/A. Müller et al
8/18 New human organ discovered that was previously missed by scientists
Layers long thought to be dense, connective tissue are actually a series of fluid-filled compartments researchers have termed the “interstitium”.
These compartments are found beneath the skin, as well as lining the gut, lungs, blood vessels and muscles, and join together to form a network supported by a mesh of strong, flexible proteins
Getty
9/18 Previously unknown society lived in Amazon rainforest before Europeans arrived, say archaeologists
Working in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso, a team led by archaeologists at the University of Exeter unearthed hundreds of villages hidden in the depths of the rainforest.
These excavations included evidence of fortifications and mysterious earthworks called geoglyphs
José Iriarte
10/18 One in 10 people have traces of cocaine or heroin on fingerprints, study finds
More than one in 10 people were found to have traces of class A drugs on their fingers by scientists developing a new fingerprint-based drug test.
Using sensitive analysis of the chemical composition of sweat, researchers were able to tell the difference between those who had been directly exposed to heroin and cocaine, and those who had encountered it indirectly.
Getty
11/18 Nasa releases stunning images of Jupiter’s great red spot
The storm bigger than the Earth, has been swhirling for 350 years. The image’s colours have been enhanced after it was sent back to Earth.
Pictures by: Tom Momary
12/18 A 3D reconstruction of an African grey parrot post euthanasia
Included in Wellcome Image Awards, this 3D image of an African grey parrot shows the highly intricate system of blood vessels.
Scott Birch. Wellcome Images
13/18 Baby Hawaiian bobtail squid
Another Wellcome Images Award winner, this time of baby Hawaiian bobtail squid. The black ink sac and light organ in the centre of the squid’s mantle cavity can be clearly seen.
Macroscopic Solutions. Wellcome Images
14/18 Skeletons of 5,000-year-old Chinese ‘giants’ discovered by archaeologists
The people are thought to have been unusually tall and strong. The tallest of the skeletons uncovered measured at 1.9m
YouTube
15/18 Nasa discovers 75,000 mile-wide hole in the Sun
Sunspots are caused by interactions with the Sun’s magnetic field and are cooler areas on the star’s surface.
Nasa
16/18 View(active tab) Apple News Breaking news email Edit Revisions Workflow Clear Cache NewsScience 132 million-year-old dinosaur fossil found at factory in Surrey
Paleontologists Sarah Moore and Jamie Jordan believe they have discovered a Iguanodon dinosaur, a herbivore that was around three metres tall and 10 metres long
Cambridge Photographers/Wienerberger
17/18 Discovering life on Mars is less likely as researchers find toxic chemicals on its surface
The Echus Chasma, one of the largest water source regions on Mars
Getty Images
18/18 An iris clip fitted onto the eye
This images is apart of the Wellcome Images Awards and shows how an artificial intraocular lens is fitted onto the eye. Used for conditions such as myopia and cataracts.
Cambridge University Hospitals NHS FT. Wellcome Images
1/18 Fabric that changes according to temperature created
Scientists at the University of Maryland have created a fabric that adapts to heat, expanding to allow more heat to escape the body when warm and compacting to retain more heat when cold
Faye Levine, University of Maryland
2/18 Baby mice tears could be used in pest control
A study from the University of Tokyo has found that the tears of baby mice cause female mice to be less interested in the sexual advances of males
Getty
3/18 Final warning to limit “climate catastrophe”
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has issued a report which projects the impact of a rise in global temperatures of 1.5 degrees Celsius and warns against a higher increase
Getty
4/18 Nobel prize for evolution chemists
The nobel prize for chemistry has been awarded to three chemists working with evolution. Frances Smith is being awarded the prize for her work on directing the evolution of enzymes, while Gregory Winter and George Smith take the prize for their work on phage display of peptides and antibodies
Getty/AFP
5/18 Nobel prize for laser physicists
The nobel prize for physics has been awarded to three physicists working with lasers. Arthur Ashkin (L) was awarded for his “optical tweezers” which use lasers to grab particles, atoms, viruses and other living cells. Donna Strickland and Gérard Mourou were jointly awarded the prize for developing chirped-pulse amplification of lasers
Reuters/AP
6/18 Discovery of a new species of dinosaur
The Ledumahadi Mafube roamed around 200 million years ago in what is now South Africa. Recently discovered by a team of international scientists, it was the largest land animal of its time, weighing 12 tons and standing at 13 feet. In Sesotho, the South African language of the region in which the dinosaur was discovered, its name means “a giant thunderclap at dawn”
Viktor Radermacher / SWNS
7/18 Birth of a planet
Scientists have witnessed the birth of a planet for the first time ever.
This spectacular image from the SPHERE instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope is the first clear image of a planet caught in the very act of formation around the dwarf star PDS 70. The planet stands clearly out, visible as a bright point to the right of the center of the image, which is blacked out by the coronagraph mask used to block the blinding light of the central star.
ESO/A. Müller et al
8/18 New human organ discovered that was previously missed by scientists
Layers long thought to be dense, connective tissue are actually a series of fluid-filled compartments researchers have termed the “interstitium”.
These compartments are found beneath the skin, as well as lining the gut, lungs, blood vessels and muscles, and join together to form a network supported by a mesh of strong, flexible proteins
Getty
9/18 Previously unknown society lived in Amazon rainforest before Europeans arrived, say archaeologists
Working in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso, a team led by archaeologists at the University of Exeter unearthed hundreds of villages hidden in the depths of the rainforest.
These excavations included evidence of fortifications and mysterious earthworks called geoglyphs
José Iriarte
10/18 One in 10 people have traces of cocaine or heroin on fingerprints, study finds
More than one in 10 people were found to have traces of class A drugs on their fingers by scientists developing a new fingerprint-based drug test.
Using sensitive analysis of the chemical composition of sweat, researchers were able to tell the difference between those who had been directly exposed to heroin and cocaine, and those who had encountered it indirectly.
Getty
11/18 Nasa releases stunning images of Jupiter’s great red spot
The storm bigger than the Earth, has been swhirling for 350 years. The image’s colours have been enhanced after it was sent back to Earth.
Pictures by: Tom Momary
12/18 A 3D reconstruction of an African grey parrot post euthanasia
Included in Wellcome Image Awards, this 3D image of an African grey parrot shows the highly intricate system of blood vessels.
Scott Birch. Wellcome Images
13/18 Baby Hawaiian bobtail squid
Another Wellcome Images Award winner, this time of baby Hawaiian bobtail squid. The black ink sac and light organ in the centre of the squid’s mantle cavity can be clearly seen.
Macroscopic Solutions. Wellcome Images
14/18 Skeletons of 5,000-year-old Chinese ‘giants’ discovered by archaeologists
The people are thought to have been unusually tall and strong. The tallest of the skeletons uncovered measured at 1.9m
YouTube
15/18 Nasa discovers 75,000 mile-wide hole in the Sun
Sunspots are caused by interactions with the Sun’s magnetic field and are cooler areas on the star’s surface.
Nasa
16/18 View(active tab) Apple News Breaking news email Edit Revisions Workflow Clear Cache NewsScience 132 million-year-old dinosaur fossil found at factory in Surrey
Paleontologists Sarah Moore and Jamie Jordan believe they have discovered a Iguanodon dinosaur, a herbivore that was around three metres tall and 10 metres long
Cambridge Photographers/Wienerberger
17/18 Discovering life on Mars is less likely as researchers find toxic chemicals on its surface
The Echus Chasma, one of the largest water source regions on Mars
Getty Images
18/18 An iris clip fitted onto the eye
This images is apart of the Wellcome Images Awards and shows how an artificial intraocular lens is fitted onto the eye. Used for conditions such as myopia and cataracts.
Cambridge University Hospitals NHS FT. Wellcome Images
The team stuck electrodes into the water of four hot springs, and left them for a month to be colonised by the bacteria.
“The natural conditions found in geothermal features such as hot springs are difficult to replicate in laboratory settings,” said Dr Haluk Beyenal, who supervised the study. “So, we developed a new strategy to enrich heat-loving bacteria in their natural environment.”
Some of these electricity-producing bacteria have the power to convert toxic pollutants into less harmful substances.
As they do so, the electrons passing through their body as they digest their food are dumped outside their bodies on minerals or metals, using hair-like structures that protrude from their bodies like wires.
This produces a stream of electricity in an efficient process that can conceivably be used in low-power applications.
While scientists hope that the microbes could one day power all kinds of systems, they have been limited by the handful of varieties that have been grown in labs.
But by employing the naturally occurring populations in places like Yellowstone, they hope they can develop something that helps to both produce electricity and clear up pollutants.
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