This #polar #bear might not know it, but he's not alone.⠀ ⠀ We thought for a long time that polar #ice and #snow ❄️ were sterile—too bitterly #cold to support #life within.⠀ ⠀ But #researchers from the University of York have recently discovered #bacteria living in these severe conditions. Working at carefully quarantined sites in both the #Arctic and #Antarctic, they sterilized samples of snow with UV #light ☀️, and compared them to untreated samples. The #natural snow contained traces of methyl iodide, a by-product of certain bacteria.⠀ ⠀ This new knowledge has #profound implications. Knowing that bacteria can survive in such harsh #environments expands the possibility for life on other #planets previously deemed too cold.