Putative fossil life in a hydrothermal system of the Dellen impact structure, Sweden
(2010) In International Journal of Astrobiology 9(3). p.137-146- Abstract
Impact-generated hydrothermal systems are commonly proposed as good candidates for hosting primitive life on early Earth and Mars. However, evidence of fossil microbial colonization in impact-generated hydrothermal systems is rarely reported in the literature. Here we present the occurrence of putative fossil microorganisms in a hydrothermal system of the 89 Ma Dellen impact structure, Sweden. We found the putative fossilized microorganisms hosted in a fine-grained matrix of hydrothermal alteration minerals set in interlinked fractures of an impact breccia. The putative fossils appear as semi-straight to twirled filaments, with a thickness of 1-2 m, and a length between 10 and 100 m. They have an internal structure with segmentation,... (More)
Impact-generated hydrothermal systems are commonly proposed as good candidates for hosting primitive life on early Earth and Mars. However, evidence of fossil microbial colonization in impact-generated hydrothermal systems is rarely reported in the literature. Here we present the occurrence of putative fossil microorganisms in a hydrothermal system of the 89 Ma Dellen impact structure, Sweden. We found the putative fossilized microorganisms hosted in a fine-grained matrix of hydrothermal alteration minerals set in interlinked fractures of an impact breccia. The putative fossils appear as semi-straight to twirled filaments, with a thickness of 1-2 m, and a length between 10 and 100 m. They have an internal structure with segmentation, and branching of filaments occurs frequently. Their composition varies between an outer and an inner layer of a filament, where the inner layer is more iron rich. Our results indicate that hydrothermal systems in impact craters could potentially be capable of supporting microbial life. This could have played an important role for the evolution of life on early Earth and Mars.
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- author
- Lindgren, Paula LU ; Ivarsson, Magnus LU ; Neubeck, Anna ; Broman, Curt ; Henkel, Herbert and Holm, Nils G.
- publishing date
- 2010-07
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- Early Earth, early Mars, hydrothermal system, impact structure, microfossils
- in
- International Journal of Astrobiology
- volume
- 9
- issue
- 3
- pages
- 10 pages
- publisher
- Cambridge University Press
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:77954564047
- ISSN
- 1473-5504
- DOI
- 10.1017/S147355041000011X
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- no
- id
- 0bce0ffb-daaf-4714-8b85-c74af12fec8b
- date added to LUP
- 2017-06-26 09:56:18
- date last changed
- 2022-04-01 17:43:09
@article{0bce0ffb-daaf-4714-8b85-c74af12fec8b,
abstract = {{<p>Impact-generated hydrothermal systems are commonly proposed as good candidates for hosting primitive life on early Earth and Mars. However, evidence of fossil microbial colonization in impact-generated hydrothermal systems is rarely reported in the literature. Here we present the occurrence of putative fossil microorganisms in a hydrothermal system of the 89 Ma Dellen impact structure, Sweden. We found the putative fossilized microorganisms hosted in a fine-grained matrix of hydrothermal alteration minerals set in interlinked fractures of an impact breccia. The putative fossils appear as semi-straight to twirled filaments, with a thickness of 1-2 m, and a length between 10 and 100 m. They have an internal structure with segmentation, and branching of filaments occurs frequently. Their composition varies between an outer and an inner layer of a filament, where the inner layer is more iron rich. Our results indicate that hydrothermal systems in impact craters could potentially be capable of supporting microbial life. This could have played an important role for the evolution of life on early Earth and Mars.</p>}},
author = {{Lindgren, Paula and Ivarsson, Magnus and Neubeck, Anna and Broman, Curt and Henkel, Herbert and Holm, Nils G.}},
issn = {{1473-5504}},
keywords = {{Early Earth; early Mars; hydrothermal system; impact structure; microfossils}},
language = {{eng}},
number = {{3}},
pages = {{137--146}},
publisher = {{Cambridge University Press}},
series = {{International Journal of Astrobiology}},
title = {{Putative fossil life in a hydrothermal system of the Dellen impact structure, Sweden}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S147355041000011X}},
doi = {{10.1017/S147355041000011X}},
volume = {{9}},
year = {{2010}},
}