Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine
Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Microbiology & Virology, Polar / Alpine Expeditions, Press Release, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Sample Return, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Ice World Expedition: Drilling Through Thwaites Glacier In West Antarctica

by Keith Cowing

A team of researchers from the UK and Korea has reached the most inaccessible and least-understood part of Thwaites Glacier in West Antarctica where they will drill through the glacier […]

Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Dale Andersen's Field Reports, Exploration Gear & Tech, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Life Support Systems, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Microbiology & Virology, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Sample Return, Tricorders & Sensors, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Antarctica’s Untersee – A Most Unusual Lake

by Keith Cowing

Scientists estimate that Earth is home to more than 100 million lakes. Among the most unusual is Lake Untersee, one of Antarctica’s largest and deepest surface lakes, known for its […]

Posted inArctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Sample Return, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Researchers Uncover Hidden Genetic World in Antarctic Waters

by Keith Cowing

The researchers analyzed DNA from water samples collected throughout the Southern Ocean during a three-month expedition in late 2016 and early 2017. After sequencing the DNA, they cross-referenced their results […]

Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Press Release, Terraforming & Geoengineering, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Subglacial Weathering May Have Slowed Earth’s Escape From Snowball Earth

by Keith Cowing

A new study led by researchers at the Earth-Life Science Institute (ELSI) at Institute of Science Tokyo challenges a long-standing assumption about Earth’s most extreme ice ages. Using numerical geochemical […]

Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Gaia - Planetary Perspectives, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Habitable Zones, Microbiology & Virology, Missions & Hardware, Nomenclature, Systematics, Natural History, Origin & Evolution of Life, Planetary Protection & Biosafety, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Sample Return, Status Report, Tricorders & Sensors, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Editorial: Life Under Pressure: Microbial Adaptation And Survival In High Pressure Environments

by Keith Cowing

A quantitative overview of Earth’s biomass has long been lacking, despite its importance for understanding the biosphere. The first global estimate—approximately 550 gigatons of carbon (Gt C)—reveals stark disparities across […]

Posted inArctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Microgravity, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Erosion Of Iceberg A-23A Sparks A Surge Of Microscopic Life

by Keith Cowing

Iceberg A-23A has had a more eventful run than most of the large Antarctic icebergs that have calved from the continent’s ice shelves in recent decades. Over its winding, forty-plus-year […]

Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Europa, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Microbiology & Virology, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Microbes From Ambient-pressure Analogues Offer Insights Into Possible Life In Europa’s High-pressure Subsurface Ocean

by Keith Cowing

Under its thick ice layer, Europa contains a shielded liquid water ocean where habitable conditions may exist. To effectively assess the habitability of this environment and the implications on putative […]

Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Astronauts and Explorers, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Microgravity, People Of Astrobiology, Press Release, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Sample Return, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Antarctic Microbial Mats: A Research Dive At Minus 20 Degrees Air Temperature

by Keith Cowing

Lake Fryxell is located in the McMurdo Dry Valley on the Antarctic mainland. The lake is covered year round with four to five metres of ice, and it has some […]

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