Some time ago, scientists discovered a group of strange biological communities thriving a mile deep in the Antarctic ice and ocean, which surprised the scientists.
Researchers from the British Antarctic Expedition dug a tunnel through the ice in the hope of facilitating the excavation of sediments from the seabed, but luckily or unluckily, they happened to drill the tunnel through a boulder on the seabed, making it a difficult task for them to collect the sediments.
Despite the difficulties, the expedition team discovered a complete ecosystem in Antarctica using hanging cameras.
Although it is still impossible to confirm whether this ecosystem is composed of life, they are still called "strange creatures" by scientists.
During the expedition, the team discovered what appeared to be a layer of bacterial film, strange sponges, and various stalked bacteria attached to rocks.
Although that expedition allowed scientists to discover that such creatures also need to eat, scientists did not find that they survived by eating mysterious things, because there was no obvious food source there, which was very strange.
Because the area was completely uninhabited and the scientists encountered a snowstorm, all expedition activities were forced to stop.
The secrets left behind also confuse scientists. How those small creatures survive is still an unsolved mystery.
Some researchers believe that the small marine creatures are likely to survive on food that drifts over because the food source moves horizontally rather than vertically.
Later, according to the journal Frontiers in Marine Science, the sponge fungi that survived in such harsh conditions were likely Antarctic mushrooms.
But scientists still don't know how the creatures on that rock survive.
Xiang Yang shook his head and thought to himself, "Humanity still knows very little about the Earth. In addition, Antarctica has always been the coldest, driest, and windiest continent on Earth. It is the only continent that spans all meridians and has the highest average altitude. The annual precipitation in its coastal areas is only 200 kilometers, and even less in inland areas. In addition, the average temperature in the coldest season of the year in Antarctica can be as low as -63°C, and the lowest temperature can reach -89.2°C. At present, humans simply cannot conduct detailed investigations on many Antarctic creatures."
Of course, those scientists are not working in vain.
The study, published in the journal Frontiers in Marine Science, announced an unbelievable discovery to humanity and made countless people realize how little we still know about the planet we live on, not to mention how resilient this extraordinary life is.
Fang Youqun squatted down and looked at the mushrooms carefully. "I don't know if these mushrooms are edible."
Xiang Yang shook his head. "For most mushrooms, the brighter the color, the more potent the toxin. Of course, nothing is absolute. There are some brightly colored red mushrooms that are non-toxic and top-grade ingredients, and there are some gray cow dung mushrooms that are poisonous. We have never even seen these mushrooms, let alone eat them. You are not allowed to touch them. It is best if you don't squat there and watch them now. Stay away from these Antarctic mushrooms."
"Your captain is right. I once saw a documentary in which a research vessel discovered a giant mushroom in Antarctica. When collecting samples, the mushrooms suddenly sprayed out a large number of highly poisonous spores, and many fish around them died immediately. If the research personnel hadn't been wearing protective clothing, they might have died there too." Gao Chuang nodded in agreement with Xiang Yang.
When Fang Youqun heard this, his face changed immediately. He stood up quickly, then took several steps back, looking at the little mushrooms with lingering fear.
Xiang Yang smiled and shook his head. "Don't be so nervous. After all, there are only a few mushrooms that can spray highly toxic substances. Most of these mushrooms are actually fine as long as you don't eat them."
According to Xiang Yang, there are many types of Antarctic mushrooms.
For example, the most famous fungus is the McMurdo Dry Valleys in Antarctica.
McMurray in Antarctica is the place on Earth that is most similar to the Martian environment. It is dry and water-scarce, with almost no snowfall and only some steep rocks. It is the only area in Antarctica without ice, but there are strong winds all year round, making it one of the harshest environments on Earth.
In McMurray, Antarctica, only a few microorganisms and some fungi can grow in cracks and rocks.
Among them, the Antarctic McMurray mushroom is the representative fungus of that place.
The reason why Antarctic McMurray is so famous is that a few years ago, a group of European researchers went to the remote valley to investigate and collected samples of some species, and then sent the samples to the International Space Station for testing.
After 18 months, half of the samples showed they had adapted to Martian-like conditions.
Research expert Madrid emphasized that the expedition was intended to evaluate the survival and long-term adaptability of microorganisms on the surface of Mars.
Xiang Yang was not optimistic that the experiment would be successful.
Even if it succeeds, I guess no one would go to Mars to grow mushrooms and then transport them back to Earth to sell.
Of course, if this kind of mushroom can really be cultivated on Mars, the significance will be unprecedentedly huge, and it is far more than just adding a mushroom cultivation base on Mars.
After building the camp well away from the mushrooms growing on the ice, Xiang Yang slid towards the floating ice.
"The sea here is more than one thousand meters deep. You don't want to go diving here, do you?" Gao Chuang asked suspiciously.
"Even if it's only a hundred meters, I dare not go down. It's snowing now, and the water surface may freeze everywhere at any time. I am not afraid to use my teeth to break through the ice like a harp seal." Xiang Yang joked.
Gao Chuang shrugged his shoulders. If you get trapped under ice while diving, it will definitely not be a joke.
"It looks like the snow will continue to fall for a while, and it's unlikely to stop anytime soon. Why don't we leave some people in the camp to guard the boats and the camp, and the rest of us walk around the entire piece of ice together to see if we can find any valuable seafood." Gao Chuang said with a smile.
Xiang Yang thought about it for a moment and quickly agreed to Gao Chuang's proposal.
Since I'm free anyway, I might as well go for a walk on the ice floe.
Even if you don't find any valuable rare seafood, it's nice to take a walk on the ice floe to kill some time.
"Okay, then I'll take a few people to explore the way, and you and my crew will guard the ship in the camp. If we find any rare seafood later, I'll come back and inform you." Gao Chuang thought about it and said to Xiang Yang.
"Boss Gao, why don't I go explore the way?" Xiang Yang said with a wry smile. At Gao Chuang's current age, it was indeed inappropriate for him to explore the way.