cryoconite Archives

Partial Solar Eclipse at Lake Untersee, Antarctica -- Dale T. Andersen

Analog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Dale Andersen's Field Reports, Exploration Gear & Tech, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Life Support Systems, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Microbiology & Virology, Missions & Hardware, People Of Astrobiology, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Sample Return, Status Report, Tricorders & Sensors, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Dale Andersen’s Astrobiology Antarctic Status Report: 18 February 2026: Eclipse Watching And Base Camp Packing

by Keith CowingFebruary 18, 2026February 18, 2026

Dale: A partial eclipse over Lake Untersee yesterday—an ordinary piece of celestial clockwork that felt anything but ordinary from the icy shores of Lake Untersee in the mountains of Antarctica. […]

Birgit Sattler assists Dale Andersen as he begins a diver underneath the ice cover of Lake Untersee, Antarctica -- credit: Klemens Weisleitner

Analog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Astronauts and Explorers, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Dale Andersen's Field Reports, Exploration Gear & Tech, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Life Support Systems, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Microbiology & Virology, Missions & Hardware, Nomenclature, Systematics, Natural History, Origin & Evolution of Life, People Of Astrobiology, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Sample Return, Tricorders & Sensors, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Dale Andersen’s Astrobiology Antarctic Status Report: 15 February 2026: Diving Under The Ice At Lake Untersee

by Keith CowingFebruary 17, 2026February 17, 2026

Keith, Sorry for the quiet—our days have been packed, and out here every usable hour feels borrowed. Since my last report the weather has changed its mind a few times. […]

The Tibetan Plateau is a region of stunning beauty, and as this true-color Terra MODIS image from December 14, 2002, shows, is graced with hundreds of lakes that sparkle like emeralds and sapphires against the delicate tan and peach colors of the land. The plateau´s elevation averages 4,880 meters (16,010 feet) above sea level, and is bounded by mountain ranges to the north—the Kunlun—and the south—the Himalayas. Four of the largest Asian rivers originate in Tibet: the Chang (Yangtze), the Mekong, the Thanlwin, and the Brahmaputra. larger image -- NASA

Analog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Microbiology & Virology, Press Release

Microscopic Life Inhabiting Glacial Habitats On The Tibetan Plateau

by Keith CowingJune 10, 2025June 10, 2025

Glaciers are important regulators of the Earth’s climate system, affecting the hydrological cycle, energy balance and the development of downstream ecosystems. Other than the polar regions, the Tibetan Plateau stands […]

Comparison of extraction conditions and chemical diversity of detected metabolic features. The dendrogram on the left of the heat map shows hierarchical clustering of similarly extracted metabolic features. The heat map displays the intensity of metabolites normalized to the most intense peak within each row (metabolic feature). Differences in metabolic feature peak intensity across extraction conditions are visible as top to bottom – based on polarity and left to right – based on solvents (from organic to aqueous). The line plot at the far left of the figure shows decreasing (magenta lines) and increasing (green lines) peak intensities in extraction conditions from left to right. Metabolic features were roughly divided into polar, midpolar, and relatively nonpolar and categorized into different metabolic classes. Each class is given a different color, as the figure legend shows. Confirmed and putatively confirmed metabolic features after MS/MS spectra match with the standards/predicted theoretical fragments match (via Mass Frontier software) are shown in bold. N = 4 for each extraction condition. -- biorxiv.org

Analog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Astrogeology, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Microbiology & Virology, Status Report

Evaluation of Extraction Solvents for Untargeted Metabolomics to decipher the Dissolved Organic Matter of Antarctic Cryoconite Holes

by Keith CowingNovember 19, 2024November 19, 2024

Cryoconite holes are biological hotspots with a high biogeochemical turnover rate, contributing significantly to the glacial ecosystem’s overall carbon cycles and net fluxes.

The dashed curves represent results from our solar radiation model, and the solid-coloured curves represent measurements made in Greenland. Many existing ice models14,44,45,46,47 either assume that no solar radiation penetrates below the top few millimeters, or use a single broadband extinction value indicated by the horizontal black line, which can lead to errors in the energy absorbed at depth up to a few orders of magnitude. -- Nature

Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Mars, Press Release

Could Life Exist Below Mars Ice? NASA Study Proposes Possibilities

by Keith CowingOctober 17, 2024

Researchers think meltwater beneath Martian ice could support microbial life. While actual evidence for life on Mars has never been found, a new NASA study proposes microbes could find a […]

Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Mars, Status Report

Orbital Survey Of Water on Mars: Dusty Water Ice in Dao Vallis

by Keith CowingOctober 15, 2024October 15, 2024

The white material seen within this gully is believed to be dusty water ice in a Martian region called Dao Vallis, captured by NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO).

cryoconite

Dale Andersen’s Astrobiology Antarctic Status Report: 18 February 2026: Eclipse Watching And Base Camp Packing

Dale Andersen’s Astrobiology Antarctic Status Report: 15 February 2026: Diving Under The Ice At Lake Untersee

Microscopic Life Inhabiting Glacial Habitats On The Tibetan Plateau

Evaluation of Extraction Solvents for Untargeted Metabolomics to decipher the Dissolved Organic Matter of Antarctic Cryoconite Holes

Could Life Exist Below Mars Ice? NASA Study Proposes Possibilities

Orbital Survey Of Water on Mars: Dusty Water Ice in Dao Vallis

A Whole-Earth Simulation Built To Help Find Life On Other Planets

NASA Spaceline Current Awareness List #1,223 30 October 2026 (Space Life Science Research Results)

Communicating The Uncertainty Of Extraterrestrial Life: How The News Media Portrayed The Contested Phosphine Detection On Venus

Windows of Nutrient Bioaccessibility: Phosphorus as a Key Constraint on the Chemical Potential for Life Beyond Earth

Hidden In Plain Sight In Ryugu And Meteorites