Deep-Sea Hydrothermal Vent and Impact-Generated Hydrothermal Vent Systems: Insights into the Origin of Life

Abstract

Studies of deep-sea hydrothermal vent systems have generated a spectrum of hypotheses concerning the origin of life on Earth. The present paper integrates recent literature surrounding three separate hydrothermal vent systems (Lost City in the mid-Atlantic, Guaymas Basin in the Gulf of California, and 9°50′ N on the East Pacific Rise) to provide biological, chemical, and geophysical support for these origin-of-life hypotheses. Comparisons between deep-sea hydrothermal vents and impact-generated hydrothermal vent systems may provide further insights into the origin of life. Impact-generated hydrothermal vent systems may have cradled early life. A comprehensive review of studies conducted at Lonar Lake, the Haughton impact structure, and the Chicxulub impact crater provide evidence of long-term hydrothermal activity conducive to the formation of early life, as well as potentially unique DNA structures found in sediment samples—opening the discussion for further investigations into the possible origin (or origins) of life both on Earth and other planetary bodies.