Bacteria on Mars for improve soil and crop production

New research for adapt bacteria for life on Mars and modify soil in order to enhance crop production.

Could be a great technique for Mars terraformation.

Sources:

http://www.mars-one.com/news/press-releases/can-bacteria-survive-in-mars-soil-and-thus-enhance-crop-production

https://community.mars-one.com/blog/category/wieger-wamelink

Equation for measure the impact of human activity on the Earth system

Humans are a very important factor in the Earth system...

Co-researcher Professor Will Steffen from ANU said the study for the first time came up with a mathematical equation to describe the impact of human activity on the Earth system, known as the Anthropocene equation.

Sources:

Humans affect Earth system more than natural forces

The Anthropocene equation - Feb 10, 2017

The importance of subterranean microbes

Here we apply terabase-scale cultivation-independent metagenomics to aquifer sediments and groundwater, and reconstruct 2,540 draft-quality, near-complete and complete strain-resolved genomes that represent the majority of known bacterial phyla as well as 47 newly discovered phylum-level lineages. Metabolic analyses spanning this vast phylogenetic diversity and representing up to 36% of organisms detected in the system are used to document the distribution of pathways in coexisting organisms.

Sources:

Thousands of microbial genomes shed light on interconnected biogeochemical processes in an aquifer system : Nature Communications

CO2 increasing... and plants cannot help us...

Natural carbon sinks currently absorb approximately half of the anthropogenic CO2 emitted by fossil fuel burning, cement production and land-use change. However, this airborne fraction may change in the future depending on the emissions scenario. An important issue in developing carbon budgets to achieve climate stabilisation targets is the behaviour of natural carbon sinks, particularly under low emissions mitigation scenarios as required to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement.

Sources:
Simulating the Earth system response to negative emissions - IOPscience

Planet earth megafauna in darger

The big animals continue their extinction...

59% of the world's largest carnivores (more than or equal to 15 kilograms, n = 27) and 60% of the world's largest herbivores (more than or equal to 100 kilograms, n = 74) are classified as threatened with extinction on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List (supplemental tables S1 and S2). 

Sources:

Saving the World's Terrestrial Megafauna

The first form of live in planet earth

 The origin of life on planet earth could be a bacteria that fix C02 and H2...

The concept of a last universal common ancestor of all cells (LUCA, or the progenote) is central to the study of early evolution and life's origin, yet information about how and where LUCA lived is lacking. 

LUCA inhabited a geochemically active environment rich in H2, CO2 and iron. The data support the theory of an autotrophic origin of life involving the Wood–Ljungdahl pathway in a hydrothermal setting. 

Sources:

The physiology and habitat of the last universal common ancestor : Nature Microbiology

Bacteria 'eats' plastic

The plastic is one of the new materials that humans use extensively worldwide... Is no really 'compatible' with nature but there is a 'bacteria' (Ideonella Sakaiensis) that seems to put this new material into the biodegradation scheme...

It could be a viable remediation or recycling strategy.

Bacteria isolated from outside a bottle-recycling facility can break down and metabolize plastic. The proliferation of plastics in consumer products, from bottles to clothing, has resulted in the release of countless tons of plastics into the environment.

Sources:

A bacterium that degrades and assimilates poly(ethylene terephthalate) | Science

Cultivate potatoes in Mars...

A new research will grow potatoes under Martian conditions.

If it works it would be a good notice for malnutrition poverty all around the globe.

Sources:

NASA Will Test Growing Potatoes In Mars-Like Environment | IFLScience

Potatoes on Mars: Setting course for Martian farming

Lunar terraforming

NASA new project will user a crater on the Moon for create "habitat area" for robots and humans.

Sources:

NASA IS SERIOUSLY CONSIDERING TERRAFORMING PART OF THE MOON WITH ROBOTS | Popular Science

Humans race faces to Sixth great extinction

When other species on the planet are disappearing at an alarming rate is time to question if we (humans) could survive to this process.

Sources:

Will Humans Survive the Sixth Great Extinction? - National Geographic

The "group selection" is natural...

The local adaptation in natural populations should be controlled usign biological mechanisms like "group selection".

Sources:

Spiders: Survival of the fittest group -- ScienceDaily

Plants communication usign ARN

Scientist had discovered a new method for communication used by plants. These new method is based on interchange of ARN information.

Sources:

Scientists think they've discovered an entirely new mode of plant communication | The Verge
Genomic-scale exchange of mRNA between a parasitic plant and its hosts

Water in Mars

NASA's Curiosity rover has measured some data that indicates that 2% of soil is water.

Sources:

Nasa's Curiosity rover finds water in Martian soil | Science | The Guardian
Analysis of Surface Materials by the Curiosity Mars Rover

Vegetables everywhere...

Space farming project is a interesting research about vegetal life in space.

Sources:

Space Farming: The Final Frontier - Modern Farmer
NASA - Vegetable Production System