Project description
Exploring how microbes are guardians of Earth’s water
Earth’s ability to hold onto its water is key to life. Keeping it stable on the planet depends on preventing hydrogen from escaping into space. While Earth’s atmosphere and magnetic field block some hydrogen loss, another critical factor may be the role of microbes. The ERC-funded AQUA project will explore how tiny organisms through hydrogen oxidation help keep water on our planet. This widespread process has likely been crucial in preserving Earth’s oceans over billions of years. Researchers will quantify hydrogen oxidation in microbial communities, decipher microbes’ imprints on geological hydrogen, trace their evolution and model hydrogen cycling. AQUA hopes to reveal how life itself has shaped Earth’s water stability and its implications for finding life on other planets.
Objective
Water is essential to planetary habitability, and Earth’s long-term water stability depends on mechanisms preventing hydrogen escape to space. Hydrogen on Earth is continually produced through geological and biological processes. While hydrogen production from water photolysis in the upper atmosphere is largely prevented by Earth’s magnetic field and atmospheric cold traps, hydrogen generated in the crust or near the planetary surface would escape to space unless oxidation processes act on it quickly. AQUA hypothesises that biological hydrogen oxidation is one of the major processes preventing planetary water loss and that it played a key role during Earth's evolutionary history. Biological hydrogen oxidation is an ancient and ubiquitous metabolism that spans all major branches of life and is prominent across Earth's environments. Simple calculations suggest that without biological hydrogen oxidation Earth would have lost a significant fraction of its oceans over time. By integrating microbiology, evolutionary biology, geochemistry, and planetary science, AQUA aims to unravel the role of biological hydrogen cycling in Earth’s water retention and its implications for the search of life in the universe. The project will focus on: (1) Quantify hydrogen oxidation in microbial communities using novel in situ and laboratory methods; (2) Decipher biological imprints on geological hydrogen across diverse settings; (3) Trace the evolution and biochemical basis of microbial hydrogen metabolism; and (4) Model biological hydrogen cycling’s role in planetary water retention and its potential as a biosignature for extraterrestrial life. Fieldwork in diverse geological settings, cutting-edge analytical techniques, and computational modeling will allow AQUA to reconstruct Earth's biological hydrogen cycling history. Insights from this project promise transformative advances in understanding Earth's redox balance, microbial ecology, clean energy prospects, and planetary sciences.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
This project's classification has been human-validated.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
This project's classification has been human-validated.
Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC)
MAIN PROGRAMME
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Topic(s)
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Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-ERC - HORIZON ERC Grants
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) ERC-2025-COG
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
80138 Napoli
Italy
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