Lake Vostok: Clues for Life in Other Areas of the Universe?

Lake Vostok was discovered in 1996 using radar. The lake is around similar size to Lake Ontario in Canada, but four times as deep. Lake Vostok is a sub glacial lake, which means it is under ice, and in this case 4km of it. The lake has been cut off from contact with the atmosphere for 14 million years. The water temperature of the lake is -3ºC. The water in the lake remains liquid due to the high pressure and chemical mix of the lake. The atmosphere under the lake has oxygen levels 50 times that on freshwater lakes on the surface because of the amount of ice above it. In 1998, researchers drilled down to Lake Vostok, stopping at 120m above the lake due to contamination issues.

Strong Proof that there is Life in Lake Vostok and on Other Places in the Universe

During the time that the researchers drilled down to Lake Vostok, they found much microscopic life. If life could be found 100m above the surface of Lake Vostok then there is a high chance of life in Lake Vostok itself. Just recently, scientists have discovered that Lake Vostok has tidal forces, in which the surface of the lake rises 1-2cm. And since the environment conditions of Lake Vostok are similar to Europa, one of Jupiter's moons, proof that there is life on Lake Vostok will strengthen the argument that there is life on Europa beneath the ice.

Recent Progress

The plans to drill into Lake Vostok have been pushed to a decade after today due to a variety of issues. However, there has been some progress made with scientists developing a “cryobot”. The cryobot melts the ice using hot water until it reaches ice-water. Then a “hydrobot”, carried with the cryobot, is deployed and searches for life.