Researchers looking 5000 feet beneath the Earth in an old gold mine have discovered biofilms and other life living without light or oxygen. This former gold mine is part of the Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF), located in Lead, South Dakota, and utilized the Deep Mine Microbial Observatory. In these environments where I never imagined life would be found, it turns out that different kinds of minerals are capable of providing the nutrients microbes need.⠀ ⠀ IMAGE: DeMMO field team from left to right: Lily Momper, Brittany Kruger, and Caitlin Casar sampling fracture fluids from a DeMMO borehole installation. CREDIT: Matt Kapust ⠀ ⠀ Read my full story: buff.ly/32X5YbK⠀ ⠀ #planetaryscience #biology #earth #goldmine #surf #sanford #lead #southdakota #deepmine #intraterrestriallife #searchforlife #microbes #science #astrobiology #demmo