TED2017
Armando Azua-Bustos: The most Martian place on Earth
Armando Azua-Bustos: Aj na Zemi sú miesta ako z Marsu
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Ako môžeme preskúmať Mars bez vesmírnej lode? Namierime si to na miesto na Zemi, ktoré svojimi podmienkami najviac pripomína Mars – na púšť Atacama v Čile. Astrobiológ Armando Azua-Bustos v tejto rozľahlej vyprahnutej krajine vyrastal a teraz skúma vzácne formy života, ktoré sa prispôsobili tak, aby tam mohli prežiť. Niektoré dokonca v oblastiach, kde za posledných 400 rokov nezaznamenali žiadne dažďové zrážky. V krátkom a zábavnom prejave približuje skúmanie možností objavenia života kdekoľvek vo vesmíre, a to bez toho, aby sme museli opustiť našu planétu.
Armando Azua-Bustos - Astrobiologist
TED Fellow Armando Azua-Bustos studies how microbial life has adapted to survive in the Atacama Desert, the driest place on Earth. Full bio
TED Fellow Armando Azua-Bustos studies how microbial life has adapted to survive in the Atacama Desert, the driest place on Earth. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
00:12
This is a picture of a sunset on Mars
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Toto je záber západu slnka na Marse,
ktorý zachytilo v roku 2013
Curiosity, vozidlo NASA.
Curiosity, vozidlo NASA.
00:15
taken by NASA's Curiosity rover in 2013.
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Mars je veľmi chladná a extrémne suchá
planéta s vysokým stupňom UV žiarenia.
planéta s vysokým stupňom UV žiarenia.
00:19
Mars is a very cold planet,
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00:21
flooded with high levels of UV radiation
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00:24
and extremely dry.
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Mars sa považuje za príliš
suchú planétu na to,
suchú planétu na to,
00:26
In fact, Mars is considered
to be too dry for life as we know it.
to be too dry for life as we know it.
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aby na nej mohol existovať život.
Som astrobiológ.
00:30
I'm an astrobiologist.
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Snažím sa preskúmať pôvod života na Zemi
00:32
I try to understand
the origin of life on Earth
the origin of life on Earth
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a možnosti ako objaviť život vo vesmíre.
00:35
and the possibilities of finding life
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00:37
elsewhere in the universe.
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00:39
People sometimes ask me,
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Ľudia sa ma zvyknú pýtať,
ako môžem byť astrobiológom,
00:40
how can you be an astrobiologist
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keď nemám vlastnú vesmírnu loď?
00:42
if you don't have your own spaceship?
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00:45
Well, what I do is that I study life
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Skúmam život v takom prostredí na Zemi,
00:47
in those environments on Earth
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ktoré sa podobá iným zaujímavým
miestam vo vesmíre.
miestam vo vesmíre.
00:49
that most closely resemble
other interesting places in the universe.
other interesting places in the universe.
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00:54
All life on Earth requires water,
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Všetok život na Zemi potrebuje vodu,
preto sa zaoberám úzkym vzťahom
medzi vodou a životom,
medzi vodou a životom,
00:56
so in my case I focus
on the intimate relationship
on the intimate relationship
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00:59
between water and life
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aby som zistil, či život môže existovať
aj na takej suchej planéte ako je Mars.
aj na takej suchej planéte ako je Mars.
01:00
in order to understand
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01:02
if we could find life
in a planet as dry as Mars.
in a planet as dry as Mars.
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01:06
But since I do not have
the 2.5 billion dollars
the 2.5 billion dollars
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Keďže však nemám 2,5 miliardy dolárov
na vyslanie vlastného robota na Mars,
na vyslanie vlastného robota na Mars,
01:10
to send my own robot to Mars,
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skúmam miesto na Zemi
podobné Marsu – púšť Atacama.
podobné Marsu – púšť Atacama.
01:12
I study the most Martian place on Earth,
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01:15
the Atacama Desert.
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Nachádza sa na severe Čile.
01:16
Located in northern Chile,
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Je to najstaršia a najsuchšia
púšť na Zemi.
púšť na Zemi.
01:18
it is the oldest
and driest desert on Earth.
and driest desert on Earth.
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Predstavte si, aké je tam sucho,
01:22
To give you an idea of how dry it is,
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01:24
consider here in Vancouver it rains
over 1,000 millimeters of rain every year.
over 1,000 millimeters of rain every year.
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keď vo Vancouveri spadne asi
1 000 milimetrov zrážok ročne,
1 000 milimetrov zrážok ročne,
a v púšti Atacama sú miesta,
01:29
In the Atacama, there are places
with no reported rains
with no reported rains
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kde nezaznamenali žiadne zrážky
za posledných 400 rokov.
za posledných 400 rokov.
01:33
in the last 400 years.
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01:36
How do I know this?
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Skadiaľ to viem?
Pretože som sa v Atacame narodil
a vyrastal som tam.
a vyrastal som tam.
01:38
Well, because I was born
and raised in the Atacama --
and raised in the Atacama --
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(smiech)
01:42
(Laughter)
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Mal som pri skúmaní tejto púšte
veľkú výhodu.
veľkú výhodu.
01:43
So I had a unique advantage
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01:45
when I started studying this desert.
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01:48
So let me tell you guys
a few fantastic examples
a few fantastic examples
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Rád by som uviedol
pár úžasných príkladov toho,
pár úžasných príkladov toho,
01:52
he has found
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ako sa život prispôsobil,
aby mohol existovať takmer bez vody.
aby mohol existovať takmer bez vody.
01:54
on how life has adapted
to live with almost no water at all.
to live with almost no water at all.
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01:58
One of my first findings
was in the entrance of a cave
was in the entrance of a cave
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Jeden z prvých objavov som urobil
pri vchode do jaskyne pri Tichom oceáne.
pri vchode do jaskyne pri Tichom oceáne.
02:01
facing the Pacific Ocean.
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Tu sme našli nový druh mikrorias,
02:03
In this place, we reported
a new type of microalgae
a new type of microalgae
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ktoré rastú na pavučinách
pri vchode do jaskyne.
pri vchode do jaskyne.
02:06
that grew only on top of the spiderwebs
that covered the cave entrance.
that covered the cave entrance.
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02:11
Have you ever seen a spiderweb
early in the morning?
early in the morning?
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Videli ste niekedy pavučinu zavčasu ráno?
02:15
It's covered with dew,
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Pokrýva ju rosa.
Tieto mikroriasy zistili,
02:16
so this microalgae learned
that in order to carry photosynthesis
that in order to carry photosynthesis
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že na dosiahnutie fotosyntézy
na pobreží najsuchšej púšte na Zemi,
na pobreží najsuchšej púšte na Zemi,
02:20
in the coast of the driest
desert on Earth,
desert on Earth,
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môžu použiť pavučiny.
02:23
they could use the spiderwebs.
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02:24
So here they may access
the water from the fogs
the water from the fogs
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Môžu využiť vodu z hmly,
ktorá zvyčajne ráno pokrýva tieto oblasti.
02:27
that regularly cover
these areas in the morning.
these areas in the morning.
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02:30
In another cave, we found
a different type of microalgae.
a different type of microalgae.
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V ďalšej jaskyni sme našli
iný druh mikrorias.
iný druh mikrorias.
02:34
This one is able to use ocean mist
as a source of water,
as a source of water,
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Ako zdroj vody využívajú hmlu nad oceánom.
Žijú v spodných častiach jaskyne
02:38
and strikingly lives
in the very bottom of a cave,
in the very bottom of a cave,
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a prispôsobili sa životu
s menej ako 0,1 % množstva svetla,
s menej ako 0,1 % množstva svetla,
02:41
so it has adapted to live
with less than 0.1 percent
with less than 0.1 percent
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02:44
of the amount of light
that regular plants need.
that regular plants need.
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ktoré zvyčajne rastliny potrebujú.
02:49
These type of findings
suggest to me that on Mars,
suggest to me that on Mars,
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Tieto objavy ma presvedčili,
že na Marse môžeme nájsť
fotosyntetický život v jaskyniach.
fotosyntetický život v jaskyniach.
02:52
we may find even
photosynthetic life inside caves.
photosynthetic life inside caves.
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Mimochodom, to som ja.
02:54
And by the way, that's me.
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(smiech)
02:56
(Laughter)
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02:59
Now, for almost 15 years
this region of Yungay, discovered by NASA,
this region of Yungay, discovered by NASA,
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NASA objavila oblasť Yungay pred 15 rokmi
a považovali ju za nasuchšie
miesto v tejto púšti,
miesto v tejto púšti,
03:04
was thought to be
the driest place of this desert,
the driest place of this desert,
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ale ja som vedel, že to tak nie je.
03:07
but I knew that it was not.
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Ako? Odpoveď už poznáte.
03:09
How? You already know the answer.
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Pretože som v tej púšti vyrastal.
03:12
Because I was born
and raised in this desert.
and raised in this desert.
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Pamätám si, že som v Yungay vídaval hmlu.
03:14
So I remembered that I
usually see fogs in Yungay,
usually see fogs in Yungay,
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Preto sme umiestili senzory na miesta,
03:19
so after setting sensors
in a number of places,
in a number of places,
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kde som nikdy nevidel hmlu alebo mračná
03:21
where I remember
never seeing fogs or clouds,
never seeing fogs or clouds,
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a objavil som 4 suchšie miesta ako Yungay.
03:24
I reported four other sites
much drier than Yungay,
much drier than Yungay,
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Oblast María Elena South je skutočne
najsuchším miestom na Zemi.
najsuchším miestom na Zemi.
03:28
with this one, María Elena South,
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03:31
being the truly driest place on Earth,
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03:34
as dry as Mars,
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Je tam sucho ako na Marse
03:36
and amazingly, just a 15-minute ride
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a je to len 15 minút jazdy od malého
banského mesta, kde som sa narodil.
banského mesta, kde som sa narodil.
03:38
from the small mining town
where I was born.
where I was born.
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03:42
Now, in this search, we were trying
to actually find the dry limit
to actually find the dry limit
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V tomto výskume sa pokúšame stanoviť
limit sucha pre život na Zemi,
limit sucha pre život na Zemi,
03:45
for life on Earth,
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teda miesto také suché,
že tam nič nemá šancu prežiť.
že tam nič nemá šancu prežiť.
03:46
a place so dry that nothing
was able to survive in it.
was able to survive in it.
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Aj tu sú však ukryté podzemné miesta
s množstvom rozličných mikroorganizmov,
s množstvom rozličných mikroorganizmov,
03:50
But even here, well hidden underground,
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03:53
we found a number
of different microorganisms,
of different microorganisms,
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ktoré dokazujú, že aj také suché oblasti,
aké sú na Marse, môžu byť obývateľné.
aké sú na Marse, môžu byť obývateľné.
03:55
which suggested to me
that similarly dry places, like Mars,
that similarly dry places, like Mars,
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03:59
may be in inhabited.
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04:01
We even have some preliminary evidences
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Máme niekoľko predbežných dôkazov,
že tieto mikroorganizmy môžu byť stále
aktívne vo vysušenom stave,
aktívne vo vysušenom stave,
04:03
that these microorganisms
may still be active
may still be active
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04:06
in the desiccated state,
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04:08
like walking mummies all around us,
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niečo ako chodiace múmie vôkol nás,
a že ako zdroj energie
môžu využívať UV žiarenie.
môžu využívať UV žiarenie.
04:12
and that they may be using
UV radiation as a source of energy.
UV radiation as a source of energy.
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04:16
If confirmed, this would have
a huge impact on our definition of life,
a huge impact on our definition of life,
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Potvrdenie tejto teórie by výrazne
ovplyvnilo definíciu života,
ovplyvnilo definíciu života,
i to ako hľadáme život vo vesmíre.
04:21
on how we look for life
elsewhere in the universe.
elsewhere in the universe.
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Do roku 2020 bude vďaka jasnej oblohe
04:24
Due to its clear skies, by 2020,
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04:27
60 percent of the biggest
telescopes on Earth
telescopes on Earth
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60 % najväčších teleskopov
umiestnených práve v Atacame.
umiestnených práve v Atacame.
04:30
will be located in the Atacama,
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04:32
and while everyone else
will be looking among the stars
will be looking among the stars
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Zatiaľ čo sa všetci budú
pozerať na hviezdy
pozerať na hviezdy
a hľadať tam odpoveď
na otázku, či sme tu sami,
na otázku, či sme tu sami,
04:35
to answer the question, "Are we alone?"
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04:38
I will be looking down to the ground
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ja sa budem pozerať dole na zem
a hľadať rovnakú odpoveď
u mňa doma na záhrade.
u mňa doma na záhrade.
04:40
searching for this same answer
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04:43
in my own backyard.
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Ďakujem.
04:44
Thank you.
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(potlesk)
04:46
(Applause)
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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Armando Azua-Bustos - AstrobiologistTED Fellow Armando Azua-Bustos studies how microbial life has adapted to survive in the Atacama Desert, the driest place on Earth.
Why you should listen
Astrobiologist Armando Azua-Bustos is the CEO of Atacama Biotech, where he's working to find and characterize species that are able to survive in the extreme conditions imposed by the Atacama Desert in Chile.
In the past few years, a range of different lifeforms have been discovered in the Atacama, showing fascinating adaptations to extremely low water availability, high UV radiation, high salinity and other environmental stresses. For these same reasons, the desert is considered as a good analog model of the planet Mars.
Azua-Bustos is a TED Fellow. He earned a PhD in molecular genetics and microbiology as well as an MSc in biological sciences and an MSc in biochemistry.
Armando Azua-Bustos | Speaker | TED.com