Present day Mars habitability analogue environments on Earth: Difference between revisions
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{{Wide image|Blood Falls by Peter Rejcek.jpg|400px|[[Blood Falls]] seeps from the end of the Taylor Glacier into Lake Bonney. The tent at left provides a sense of scale }} |
{{Wide image|Blood Falls by Peter Rejcek.jpg|400px|[[Blood Falls]] seeps from the end of the Taylor Glacier into Lake Bonney. The tent at left provides a sense of scale }} |
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[[Image: |
[[Image:Blood falls1 f Low Res nsf.gov.jpg|thumb|A schematic cross-section of Blood Falls showing how subglacial microbial communities have survived in cold, darkness, and absence of oxygen for a million years in brine water below [[Taylor Glacier]].]] |
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This unusual flow of melt water from below the glacier gives scientists access to an environment they could otherwise only explore by drilling (which would also risk contaminating it). The melt water source is a subglacial pool of unknown size which sometimes overflows. Biogeochemical analysis shows that the water is marine in source originally. One hypothesis is that the source may be the remains of an ancient fjord that occupied the Taylor valley in the [[tertiary period]]. The ferrous iron dissolved in the water oxidizes as the water reaches the surface, turning the water blood red.<ref name="DachwaldMikucki2014"/> |
This unusual flow of melt water from below the glacier gives scientists access to an environment they could otherwise only explore by drilling (which would also risk contaminating it). The melt water source is a subglacial pool of unknown size which sometimes overflows. Biogeochemical analysis shows that the water is marine in source originally. One hypothesis is that the source may be the remains of an ancient fjord that occupied the Taylor valley in the [[tertiary period]]. The ferrous iron dissolved in the water oxidizes as the water reaches the surface, turning the water blood red.<ref name="DachwaldMikucki2014"/> |
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