Seldom Bucket
Well-Known Member
Some of the most intriguing possibilities for finding life outside Earth are on water worlds like Europa or Enceladus — ocean moons orbiting Jupiter and Saturn. However, those worlds are encased in layers of ice, meaning any ocean exploration will take place far beneath the surface.
But on our own planet, these deep-sea zones teem most reliably with life. That life is most often found near hydrothermal vents. These cracks in the seafloor release heat and chemicals that fuel intense biozones far from any sunlight.
Now, the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) has received a NASA grant to fund a new project called In-situ Vent Analysis Divebot for Exobiology Research (InVADER). It will explore deep-sea vents on Earth in preparation for the day that scientists can send a similar craft out into the solar system to explore alien oceans and their own hydrothermal vents.
SETI to use deep-sea vents for practice hunting alien life
The Search for Extraterrestrial Life is about to go underwater. SETI will send a robot to deep-sea vents on Earth to practice future trips to worlds like Europa or Enceladus.
astronomy.com