Microbes

A scientist's quest for mysterious sources of underground oxygen may offer clues about the origins of life.

The answer eluded scientists for centuries.

The living germ artworks must be destroyed after creation.

When vessels such as the WWII tanker E.M. Clark sink, they begin a second life as habitat for a diverse ecosystem.

An environmental microbiologist explains why an individual's death is a new lease on life for an entire ecosystem.

All you need is a jar of local water and a microscope—you may even find new species. Welcome to Algae Obscura.

They often get a bad rap, but bacteria prevent erosion, undergird ecosystems, and make artificial snow.

This year, we met creatures (and other living things) great and small, from the world’s largest organism to microscopic parasites.

Join us for a daily celebration of the world’s most wondrous, unexpected, even strange places.

Join us for a daily celebration of the world’s most wondrous, unexpected, even strange places.

In Ethiopia’s Danakil Depression, a continent is tearing itself apart, and volcanic chemicals fuel ecosystems unlike anything else on the planet.

Join us for a daily celebration of the world’s most wondrous, unexpected, even strange places.