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Life in Extreme Environment Life in deep freeze: Lake Vostok, Antarctica

Life in Extreme Environment Life in deep freeze: Lake Vostok, Antarctica. Readings: Nature, 415, 828-830 Science, 286, 2138-2141 Science, 286, 2141-2144 Science, 286, 2144-2147. Hidden depths: lake Vostok in Antarctica. Surface of Lake Vostok.

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Life in Extreme Environment Life in deep freeze: Lake Vostok, Antarctica

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  1. Life in Extreme EnvironmentLife in deep freeze: Lake Vostok, Antarctica Readings: Nature, 415, 828-830 Science, 286, 2138-2141 Science, 286, 2141-2144 Science, 286, 2144-2147

  2. Hidden depths: lake Vostok in Antarctica

  3. Surface of Lake Vostok

  4. Field camp of United States Antarctic Program at Vostok

  5. Geophysical Measurements of Lake Vostok

  6. Satellite images of several large lakes at the same scale

  7. Drilling rig

  8. The borehole beneath Vostok station extends into areas of frozen lake water

  9. Time table • 1989: drilling started at Russian Antarctic research station of Vostok to obtain information on past climate history • 1990’s: evidence accumulated that there was a lake beneath the station • 1995: a meeting in UK, decided to stop the drilling before the drilling bits touched the liquid water to contaminate it. • 1998: Drilling halted with the borehole some 120 meters from the lake’s surface

  10. Time table • 1999: Ice cores from 3539-3750 m below analyzed for geochemistry and microbiology • Nov, 2001: The group met in Itlay, and outlined a plan to access lake Vostok in 3-6 years. • Meeting in Shanghai, China, July of 2002, and revised plan will be released. 10 countries will participate

  11. Lake Vostok • 240 km x 50 km • 1200 meters deep of liquid water • Lake bottom covered by sediment of hundreds of meters thick • Temperature is –3oC, but unfrozen • Totally dark • Low nutrient levels • 380 atmosphere pressure • Complete isolation for millions of years

  12. Map and Geochemical Characteristics

  13. 1999 discoveries • Gas content • Electrical conductivity measurement • Crystal size • # of inclusions • Isotopic evidence

  14. Isotopic evidence for frozen lake water

  15. Sketch of Vostok core site

  16. SEM and AFM micrographs of microbes from ice core

  17. Epifluorescence and SEM micrographs of microbes from ice cores

  18. Evidence for microbes in ice cores • Epifluorescence and SEM evidence • Hundreds to thousands of cells per ml • Molecular work • Alpha and beta proteobacteria • Heterotrophy • Incorporation of radiolabeled compounds • LPS concentration • Not culutrable

  19. Incorporation of radiolabels

  20. Energy source • Glacier ice from above • Geothermal energy • Intracontinental rife zone similar to East Africa

  21. Implication • Life in Europa – moon of Jupiter

  22. Further information • http://science.nasa.gov/newhome/headlines/ast10dec99_2.htm • http://www.ldeo.columbia.edu/~mstuding/vostok.html • ……

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