In Part 2 of this 6-part series, we follow Chris German and his team to the Mid-Cayman Rise in search of life that survives at hydrothermal vents deep below the ocean. As German and the crew set out to scoop up evidence for life on the bottom of Earth’s seafloor, Steve Vance of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) meets with a with a team of engineers and planetary scientists to plan a mission that could search for hydrothermal vent-like life on Jupiter’s moon, Europa.

By understanding how life on Earth can live without the Sun, we may discover how life began on our planet, and whether or not Earth is the only place in the universe capable of supporting a biosphere.

Searching for Life Where the Sun Don’t Shine, Part 1