SeedLabs

Could ‘extreme’ microbes steward the future of carbon capture on Earth and in space?

Humanity’s two greatest frontiers—oceans and space—have much in common; one of their similarities being carbon dioxide (CO₂). 

The majority of the Earth's atmospheric CO₂ is absorbed into the ocean.¹ As humans increase fossil fuel usage, deforestation, and other industrial processes, there’s even greater production of CO₂—and it’s changing the ocean’s chemistry at an unprecedented rate. As this excess CO₂ dissolves into our oceans, it reduces the pH, leading to ocean acidification and disrupting ecologically and economically critical marine processes. By the end of this century, the ocean is expected to be 150% more acidic² than it is now, making it one of the greatest threats to global marine life, quickly becoming considered one of climate change’s “silent killers.”³

However, excessive CO₂ is a challenge faced by humanity everywhere we go—including space. The major biochemical waste product of humans in enclosed biosphere or life support systems in space is CO₂; the CO₂ exhaled by astronauts during space flight (i.e., on the International Space Station) can result in health problems, from headaches to hypercapnia. To survive in increasingly hostile and extreme environments we need ways to capture this carbon and convert it into resources needed to survive. 

Enter The Two Frontiers Project (2FP). Founded by Dr. Braden Tierney, Krista Ryon, and Dr. James Henriksen, 2FP is an expedition-based non-profit research initiative devoted to “scientifically exploring” humanity’s greatest frontiers: the oceans and space. This team searches for solutions—usually in the form of extremophilic microbes adapted to extreme conditions that mirror future environmental challenges, such as rising temperatures, heightened radiation, and ocean acidification. Specifically, their flagship initiative aims to discover carbon-eating microbes living in extreme environments across the planet. 

2FP takes advantage of a key aspect of microbial physiology: their ability to survive just about anywhere, living off whatever resources are available. Microbes have been evolving on the planet for 3.6 billion years, further optimizing their physiology with every round of cell division. The founding members of 2FP hypothesized that the places on Earth with the highest CO₂, therefore, would house organisms best at eating it.

2FP is also creating a first-of-its-kind, open-source ‘living database’ of extreme microbiomes, combining DNA sequencing data with a biobank of distinct environmental and biological samples—an innovative approach that is  unprecedented at this scale. This comprehensive dataset will help scientists better understand microbial diversity and its potential applications for climate resilience.

In collaboration with 2FP, we aim to tap into the power of microbes for novel solutions to the climate crisis, from carbon remediation to resource management to ecological preservation. 

Status of Research

Scientific Expeditions: To date, with the support of SeedLabs, 2FP has completed four research expeditions to uncover microbes in high CO₂ areas across the globe.

CARBON1 took place at the Aeolian Islands off the coast of Sicily to sample microbial life in the volcanic, highly acidic hydrothermal CO₂ vents near the small island of Vulcano. 

CARBON2 traversed the state of Colorado—a state famous for its hot and carbonated springs—to collect, sequence, and culture microbial samples from deep in the Rocky Mountains. With Oxford Nanopore's MinION system, the team carried out a novel approach for sequencing DNA in the field and designing enrichment media onsite for targeted isolation of carbon-capture-efficient microbes. 

CARBON3 returned to Sicily’s Aeolian Islands to explore the unique underwater CO₂ seeps known as the Smoking Land where cold-water hydrothermal vents create an extraordinary bubbling, acidic environment that dramatically shapes local ecosystems. To access the microbial life thriving at these remarkable sites, the team tested innovative sampling methods and performed technically demanding dives, capturing rare insights from one of the ocean’s most challenging habitats.

CARBON4 journeyed to Shikinejima, a remote island off the coast of Japan, to study its extraordinary landscape shaped by CO₂ seeps. The area’s volcanic activity creates terrestrial hot springs and bubbling acidified waters, offering a rare opportunity to understand how life adapts to higher levels of CO₂. The expedition team navigated challenging conditions to capture critical scientific samples, providing valuable insights into how microbes might help marine ecosystems respond to ocean acidification in the coming decades.

These expeditions have led to several new findings, including the discovery of a never-before-seen microbe highly efficient at consuming CO₂, demonstrating traits that could potentially outperform leading carbon-capturing organisms (particularly in terms of biomass production). The team lovingly nicknamed the organism 'Chonkus' for its large size. This finding was published in the scientific journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology. 

Schubert, M. G., Tang, T.-C., Goodchild-Michelman, I. M., Ryon, K. A., Henriksen, J. R., Chavkin, T., Wu, Y., Miettinen, T. P., Van Wychen, S., Dahlin, L. R., Spatafora, D., Turco, G., Guarnieri, M. T., Manalis, S. R., Kowitz, J., Hann, E. C., Dhir, R., Quatrini, P., Mason, C. E., Church, G. M., … Tierney, B. T. (2024). Cyanobacteria newly isolated from marine volcanic seeps display rapid sinking and robust, high-density growth. Applied and environmental microbiology, 90(11), e0084124. https://doi.org/10.1128/aem.00841-24

 Additionally, the research team’s early analysis has identified 46 microbial consortia with traits potentially linked to coral colonization and resilience to ocean acidification. These findings could pave the way for microbial innovations to protect coral reefs and strengthen coastal resilience, helping sustain local fishing industries and global economies. The samples and associated data will be added to 2FP’s open-source living database for further study.

Learn more on Cultured

Could the microbes around your home hold the key to the future of climate technology?

In collaboration with 2FP and the global citizen science platform CitSci, we launched The Extremophile Campaign: In Your Home—a community science initiative inviting citizen scientists across the United States to collect microbes from ‘everyday extreme’ environments, such as freezers, water heaters, and other spaces where microbes have adapted to survive harsh conditions. These environments, though common, mimic the extreme conditions found in nature, and the organisms living within them could play a critical role in the development of future climate solutions.

By exploring the untapped microbial life within our homes, we aim to find organisms with transformative potential, unlocking breakthroughs in carbon sequestration, ecosystem restoration, and the conversion of CO₂ into valuable resources.

Status of Research

The campaign continues with The Extremophile Campaign: In The Wild, which expands the search for microbes beyond the home and into some of the most underexplored natural landscapes on Earth. Our focus is on local CO₂ springs across the U.S., many of which have never been studied in depth. This initiative invites the public to help map these locations, effectively allowing scientists to create a database that could serve as the foundation for future exploration.

Learn more on Cultured.

Learn more and participate at the In the Home and In the Wild pages on the CitSci platform.