Hydrogen energy at the root of life
Since the discovery of submarine hydrothermal vents around 40 years ago, these natural chemical reactors have been a focus for evolutionary researchers searching for the origin of life. The vents emit hot water containing minerals, including simple but reactive chemical substances such as hydrogen gas (H2) and carbon dioxide (CO2). Conditions like these could have resulted in the very first biochemical reactions, and thus in the emergence of the first free living cells.
