Perennial Antarctic Lake Ice: An Oasis for Life in a Polar Desert
The permanent ice covers of Antarctic lakes in the McMurdo Dry Valleys develop liquid water inclusions in response to solar heating of internal aeolian-derived sediments. The ice sediment particles serve as nutrient (inorganic and organic)–enriched microzones for the establishment of a physiological...
Published in: | Science |
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Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
Published: |
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
1998
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Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.280.5372.2095 https://www.science.org/doi/pdf/10.1126/science.280.5372.2095 |
Summary: | The permanent ice covers of Antarctic lakes in the McMurdo Dry Valleys develop liquid water inclusions in response to solar heating of internal aeolian-derived sediments. The ice sediment particles serve as nutrient (inorganic and organic)–enriched microzones for the establishment of a physiologically and ecologically complex microbial consortium capable of contemporaneous photosynthesis, nitrogen fixation, and decomposition. The consortium is capable of physically and chemically establishing and modifying a relatively nutrient- and organic matter–enriched microbial “oasis” embedded in the lake ice cover. |
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