Methanocaldococcus

Methanocaldococcus
Scientific classification
Domain: Archaea
Kingdom: Methanobacteriati
Phylum: Methanobacteriota
Class: Methanococci
Order: Methanococcales
Family: Methanocaldococcaceae
Genus: Methanocaldococcus
Whitman 2002
Type species
Methanocaldococcus jannaschii
(Jones et al. 1984) Whitman 2002
Species

Methanocaldococcus formerly known as Methanococcus is a genus of coccoid methanogen archaea. They are all mesophiles, except the thermophilic M. thermolithotrophicus and the hyperthermophilic M. jannaschii. The latter was discovered at the base of a “white smoker” chimney at 21°N on the East Pacific Rise and it was the first archaean genome to be completely sequenced, revealing many novel and eukaryote-like elements.