An “alien” ecosystem discovered on Earth (4 photos + 1 video)
In a remote part of the Atacama Desert, an “extraterrestrial” ecosystem has been found that is unlike anything else. Crystal clear lagoons surrounded by vast salt flats have been discovered on the Puna de Atacama, a giant plateau located more than 3,650 meters above sea level on the border of Argentina and Chile. 
It rarely (if ever) rains here and the sunlight is scorching, creating conditions in which few animals and plants can survive.
Yet last April, geologist Brian Hynek of the University of Colorado Boulder was looking through satellite images of the region when he came across what looked like lagoons.
Intrigued, he and microbiologist Maria Farias went to the site. The scientists had to walk tens of kilometers under the scorching sun.
“In some places we were knee-deep in salty slush,” says Hynek.
But once they got there, they saw something truly amazing.
Brian and Maria discovered a network of 12 lagoons covering approximately 10.1 hectares, surrounded by barren mountains. Under the sparkling water, they noticed huge green hills about 4.5 m wide and about a meter high.
Hynek identified them as stromatolites—complex microbial communities that form massive fossils as they grow, much like reef-building corals.
The formations resemble stromatolites that existed during the Archean era of the Earth, when there was almost no oxygen in the atmosphere.
"This lagoon may be one of the best examples of the earliest signs of life on Earth," Hynek said.
Stromatolites exist on our planet today, including off the coast of the Bahamas, but these microbial accumulations are small. They grow passively, capturing grains of sand and other debris floating in the sea.
Ancient stromatolites, on the other hand, reached 6 m in height and actively absorbed calcium and carbon dioxide from the water, causing minerals to precipitate around them.
The formations in the Atacama lagoons are composed primarily of gypsum, a mineral often found in fossil stromatolites but absent from almost all of its modern relatives.
Hynek also noted that the lagoon's environment resembles that of ancient Earth, with its salty, acidic waters and exposure to strong solar radiation (due to its high altitude).
In addition, scientists can gain unprecedented insight into how life arose on Mars, which billions of years ago resembled our planet.
“If life on Mars ever evolved before microbes, this is what it would be like,” says the geologist and space physicist. “These communities can tell us what to look for when looking for traces of life in Martian rocks.”
Hynek and Farias hope to conduct experiments to find out how microbes manage to survive in such harsh conditions. However, they have little time. The territory has already been given over to lithium mining.
“This whole unique ecosystem could disappear,” the scientist complains. “We hope that we can protect some of the lagoons or at least describe in detail what is there before they are destroyed forever.”
“It’s simply amazing that such undocumented phenomena can still be found on our planet,” he concluded.
