| Rio Tinto (river) |
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The Río Tinto is a River in southwestern Spain , in the Sierra Morena mountains of Andalusia . It flows generally south-southwest, reaching the Gulf of Cádiz at Huelva . The Río Tinto, or ''Red River'' in English , is notable for being very Acid ic, and has a deep Red dish Hue due to the Iron dissolved in the Water . The river area has a history of Mining activity since the Phoenician era; primarily for Copper but also some iron and Manganese . This river has gained recent scientific interest due to the presence of Extremophile Aerobic Bacteria that dwell in the water. These life forms are considered the likely cause of the high acid content of the water. The subsurface rocks on the river bed contain iron and Sulfide minerals on which the bacteria feed. The extreme conditions in the river may be analogous to other locations in the Solar System thought to contain liquid water, such as Subterranean Mars . Likewise Jupiter 's Moon Europa is theorized to contain an acidic ocean of water underneath its ice surface. Thus the river is of interest to Astrobiologists . Based partially on research done near the Rio Tinto river, two NASA scientists reported in February 2005 that they had found strong evidence of present life on Mars (Berger, 2005). NASA officials denied the scientists' claims shortly after they were released, however, and one of the scientists, Carol Stoker, backed off from her initial assertions (spacetoday.net, 2005). Legend holds that this river was the location of King Solomon 's Mines . SEE ALSO REFERENCES
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