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20160096_0001

© José María LOPEZ-GARCIA/ESE/CNRS Images

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20160096_0001

Hyperacid crater lakes and hydrothermal vents on the Dallol volcano

Hyperacid crater lakes and hydrothermal vents on the Dallol volcano, an environment that is unique on the planet, located in the Danakil depression in Ethiopia. The green colour of the water is due to the presence of reduced iron in solution. In January 2016, researchers undertook a scientific expedition in this region located on the rift that traverses the Afar region and one of only two places on Earth where the oceanic crust emerges on the surface. It is a multi-extreme environment, which combines very high temperatures (up to 115 °C), very low pH (values are often negative), high saline saturation (30-50%) and the presence of toxic gas. It is a perfect site to study the limits of microbial life and could therefore provide an excellent analogy with primitive Earth environments.

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