#1178 Karen Lloyd - Intraterrestrials: Discovering the Strangest Life on Earth

Nov 20, 2025

Dr. Karen Lloyd, a leading Earth Sciences professor and author of "Intraterrestrials," dives deep into fascinating subterranean life. She reveals how intraterrestrials redefine our understanding of life, thriving in extreme environments like methane seeps and boiling waters. Karen discusses the surprising longevity of microbes living for centuries and how these organisms challenge traditional views on the origins of life. She even implies that subsurface ecosystems might be key to finding extraterrestrial life, expanding our search far beyond the surface of other planets.

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INSIGHT

Life Inside Earth Is Its Own World

Intraterrestrials are organisms living inside Earth that form distinct communities unlike surface life.
They include mostly single-celled microbes and occasionally small multicellular eukaryotes such as worms.

ADVICE

How To Access Subsurface Life

Sample subsurface life by either drilling down with large rigs or waiting for deep-sourced waters and springs to bring organisms up.
Use simpler coring methods when possible to access otherwise inaccessible habitats cost-effectively.

INSIGHT

DNA Reveals Hidden Metabolism

Researchers mostly rely on DNA and other biomolecules because many subsurface microbes won't grow in lab media.
Combining genetic data with surrounding chemical measurements reveals which metabolisms are active.

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Dr. Karen Lloyd is the Wrigley Chair in Environmental Studies and Professor of Earth Sciences at the University of Southern California. Her work has appeared in leading publications such as Nature and Science. She is the author of Intraterrestrials: Discovering the Strangest Life on Earth.

In this episode, we focus on Intraterrestrials. We first discuss what intraterrestrials are and how they live. We talk about how they change our conceptions of life, and their presence in methane seeps, permafrost, active volcanoes, boiling water, and other places. We also talk about how they can live for thousands of years, what they tell us about the origins of life on Earth, the limits for life, and their applications for human life. Finally, we discuss the future of life on Earth, and the kinds of life we might find on other planets.

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