In a development that is being termed as the first piece of biological evidence about the origin of the widely discussed Lonar Crater Lake in Buldhana, microbiologists have discovered a rare bacterium in the lake sediments.
According to microbiologists at Amravati’s the Sant Gadge Baba University, the bacterium, which has been named as Bacillus Odysseyi, was first reported from the Mars Odyssey spacecraft in 2004. The bacterium found at Lonar corresponds with the characteristics of Bacillus Odesseyi to a huge extent.
“Scientists in the US had reported that the bacterium does not exist on earth. However, our findings clearly indicate that the Lonar Crater Lake was formed due to the Mars meteorite that hit Earth,” said a microbiologist with the University.
The microbiologist added that the discovery of the bacterium rules out theories that the crater was formed due to a volcanic eruption.
Scientists have already begun research on the bacterium, and the Ribonucleic acid (RNA) sequence and characterisation of the bacterium has already been identified at the National Centre for Cell Sciences in Pune.
“The bacterium correlates with almost 96 per cent of Bacillus Odesseyi’s characteristics. The findings of our research will soon be communicated to the scientific journal Nature with more details,” the microbiologist said.
Scientists have been researching the Lonar Crater Lake for several years now, with specific focus on its origin, and they have already identified 31 new bacterial species from the lake.
“Other than its ability to resist ultraviolet and gamma radiation, these bacteria have a large amount of importance for producing various enzymes,” said the microbiologist.