From Bureau of Economic Geology, The University of Texas at Austin (www.beg.utexas.edu).
For more information, please contact the author.

BEG Seminar, February 17, 2006

DEPTHX — Autonomous exploration of underwater caves
as a path to search for life on Europa

Marcus Gary

Abstract:

On the coastal plains of Tamaulipas Mexico lies an unexpected karst feature, the deepest phreatic sinkhole in the world. El Zacaton, at 350+ meters in depth, is the most dramatic cenote in an isolated karst area known as Sistema Zacaton. This system is hypothesized to have developed as a direct result of Pleistocene extrusive volcanic activity, which altered the geochemistry such that dissolution of the Upper Cretaceous limestone was radically accelerated. Unique microbial communities that interact with sulfur cycling and rock-water reactions have evolved underwater in this hydrothermal system. The combination of a vast, unexplored, underwater cave and rich biologic activity makes Sistema Zacaton a premier site to test autonomous mapping probes capable of searching for life. NASA has funded the DEPTHX project to develop and test a probe such as this and use Zacaton as an analog to the search for life on Jupiter's moon Europa. The DEPTHX project is completing the second year of three and is preparing for extensive field tests in Mexico later in 2006.