Tar

+![A pool of Tar](wiki-images/3c/3cd13f24c147e90561d48e6b4856686f.png)+ +**Tar** is a black substance substantially found in the [Tar Delta].+ +## Databank Entry+ +| Field | Details |+| :--- | :--- |+| **Source** | Scan Tar |+ +Bitumen or asphalt, a viscous mixture of carbon compounds. Not actually tar, which is a byproduct of coal distillation, but the distinction is no longer relevant.+ +Bitumen is formed from the decaying bodies of living things (biogenic bitumen), or deep geological carbon processes (abiogenic bitumen). When heated by radioactive minerals and magma flows, it flows at a creeping pace.+ +As a rich source of hydrocarbons, bitumen is a precursor to many industrial processes. Before the mass transition to nuclear power, bitumen was associated with the crude oil that fed Earth's petrofuel power industries. Proteus' higher carbon levels yield plentiful bitumen.+ +Scans detect thriving microorganism colonies and unusual sulfuric structures that may have been chemically active at higher temperatures. This bioactivity implies that tar may be a rich food source for appropriate bacteria, which could feed larger organisms in symbiosis.+ +**Assessment:** useful carbon structures may found in or near tar flows. Beware of asphalt buildup on vehicles.