Cryobiology
Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Mars, Microbiology & Virology, Origin & Evolution of Life, Polar / Alpine Expeditions, Press Release, Sample Return

Multi-technique Characterization Of Iron Reduction By An Antarctic Shewanella: An Analog System For Putative Martian Biosignature Identification

by Keith Cowing

Microbes from terrestrial extreme environments enable testing of biosignature production in conditions relevant to astrobiological targets.

Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Microbiology & Virology, Press Release, Sample Return

Waking Up Microbes Trapped In Permafrost For Up To 40,000 Years

by Keith Cowing

In a new study, a team of geologists and biologists led by CU Boulder resurrected ancient microbes that had been trapped in ice—in some cases for around 40,000 years.

Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Commercial & Private Sector, Cryobiology, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release

Ice Mixed With Amino Acids Stores Methane In Minutes

by Keith Cowing

If you have ever cooked on a gas stove or seen a flame flicker to life with the turn of a knob, you have seen natural gas in action. Supplying […]

Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Icy Worlds, Microbiology & Virology, Sample Return, Status Report

Ice Gliding Diatoms Establish Record-low Temperature Limits For Motility In A Eukaryotic Cell

by Keith Cowing

In the harsh Arctic environments, ice-dwelling diatoms remarkably survive and thrive, but their behavioral adaptations are poorly understood.

Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Microbiology & Virology, Status Report

Modelling Snow Algal Habitat Suitability And Ecology Under Extreme Weather Events On The Antarctic Peninsula

by Keith Cowing

Snow algae form extensive blooms within Antarctica’s coastal snowpacks and are a crucial contributor to its scarce terrestrial ecosystems.

Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Away Teams & Field Reports, Cryobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Icy Worlds, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Missions & Hardware, Polar / Alpine Expeditions, Press Release

Limiting Ice World Exploration: U.S. Will Retire Its Only Icebreaker Thus Stranding Polar Research

by Keith Cowing

Editor’s note: space agencies around the world have long used polar locations as analogs wherein the sudy of geology and biology informs our understanding of the extremes to which Earth […]

Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Habitable Zones, Mars, Microbiology & Virology, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

The Effects Of Brines Relevant To Mars And The Ocean Worlds On Bacterial Growth Reflect Salt-specific Responses Across Water Activity

by Keith Cowing

Freezing point depression due to high salt concentration is crucial for liquid water to exist on cold worlds, expanding special regions where habitats are plausible.

Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Microbiology & Virology, Planetary Protection & Biosafety, Sample Return, Status Report

Characterizing Microbial Communities in >7000- and >180,000-Year-Old Antarctic Permafrost Using a Low-Biomass Decontamination Protocol

by Keith Cowing

The McMurdo Dry Valleys may harbor diverse surface microbial communities, yet little is known about subsurface microorganisms in permafrost and their potential for paleoecological reconstruction.

Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Desert Worlds, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Mars, Microbiology & Virology, Press Release, Radiation

Super Fungi Survive Extreme Mars-like Environments

by Keith Cowing

People have long been intrigued by the possibility of life beyond Earth and how it might endure in extraterrestrial environments. There is no confirmed evidence of extraterrestrial life, not even […]

Posted inAnalog Studies, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Mars, Origin & Evolution of Life, Status Report

Slow Radiolysis of Amino Acids in Mars-Like Permafrost Conditions: Applications to the Search for Extant Life on Mars

by Keith Cowing

Future missions dedicated to the search for extant life on Mars will require a clear understanding of the organic biosignature degradation processes in the shallow icy subsurface.

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