Schematic diagram of a Thermococcus gammatolerans cell

taxonomy Taxonomy is the practice and science of categorization or classification. A taxonomy (or taxonomical classification) is a scheme of classification, especially a hierarchical classification, in which things are organized into groups or types. ...

, the Thermococci are a class of microbes within the

Euryarchaeota Euryarchaeota (from Ancient Greek ''εὐρύς'' eurús, "broad, wide") is a phylum of archaea. Euryarchaeota are highly diverse and include methanogens, which produce methane and are often found in intestines, halobacteria, which survive ex ...

.See the NCBIbr>webpage on Thermococci
Data extracted from the They live in extremely hot environments, such as hydrothermal vents, and they have optimal growth temperatures above 80 °C. '' Thermococcus'' and ''

Pyrococcus ''Pyrococcus'' is a genus of Thermococcaceaen archaean.See the NCBIbr>webpage on Pyrococcus Data extracted from the Description and significance ''Pyrococcus'' has similar characteristics of other thermoautotrophican archaea such as ''Archa ...

'' (literally "balls of fire") are both obligately

anaerobic Anaerobic means "living, active, occurring, or existing in the absence of free oxygen", as opposed to aerobic which means "living, active, or occurring only in the presence of oxygen." Anaerobic may also refer to: *Adhesive#Anaerobic, Anaerobic ad ...

chemoorganotrophs. ''Thermococcus'' prefers 70-95 °C and ''Pyrococcus'' 70-100 °C. '' Palaeococcus helgesonii'', recently discovered in the

Tyrrhenian Sea The Tyrrhenian Sea (; it, Mar Tirreno , french: Mer Tyrrhénienne , sc, Mare Tirrenu, co, Mari Tirrenu, scn, Mari Tirrenu, nap, Mare Tirreno) is part of the Mediterranean Sea off the western coast of Italy. It is named for the Tyrrhenian pe ...

, is an

aerobic Aerobic means "requiring air," in which "air" usually means oxygen. Aerobic may also refer to * Aerobic exercise, prolonged exercise of moderate intensity * Aerobics, a form of aerobic exercise * Aerobic respiration, the aerobic process of cell ...

chemoheterotrophic that grows at temperatures of 45-85 °C with an optimal temperature of 80 °C. '' Thermococcus gammatolerans'' sp. nov. was recently discovered in the Guaymas Basin, and it grows at temperatures from 55-95 °C with an optimal temperaturearound 88 °C with an optimal pH of 6. It has pronounced radioresistance and can survive

gamma radiation A gamma ray, also known as gamma radiation (symbol γ or \gamma), is a penetrating form of electromagnetic radiation arising from the radioactive decay of atomic nuclei. It consists of the shortest wavelength electromagnetic waves, typically s ...

at 30 kGy.

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Archaea classes Euryarchaeota {{Euryarchaeota-stub

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