CSI in the snow
1 Sep 2010 by Evoluted New Media
Just as forensic scientists search crime scene for evidence, two British researchers have examined the coldest places on Earth to see how organisms survive, aiming to provide clues to how life could exist on other planets.
Just as forensic scientists search crime scene for evidence, two British researchers have examined the coldest places on Earth to see how organisms survive, aiming to provide clues to how life could exist on other planets.
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Dr Liane Benning and Jennifer Eigenbrode obtaining core samples in Friedrichbreen glacier, near Bockfjorden, where samples were taken Credit: Juan Diego Rodriguez-Blanco |
Professor Liane Benning from the University of Leeds and Dr Dominique Tobler from the University of Glasgow spent two weeks in Svalbard, Norway analysing extremophiles – organisms that thrive in harsh conditions – to investigate how they first colonised ice and snow. The research is part of the AMESE project which uses extreme conditions as a test-bed for technology that could be used on NASA and ESA missions to Mars.
“Glacial snow is a good analogue for ice and frost-covered ground at the Martian poles or other icy bodies in the Solar System like Europa,” said Benning, “If we can learn more about how life can form and thrive in these areas, and the survival strategies they adopt, it gives up a better chance of detecting life on other planets with similarly extreme conditions.”
Benning said organisms in these conditions have evolved with very little food, large temperature fluctuations, dehydration and high levels of ultraviolet radiation. Some snow algae, for example, make carotinoids pigments which protect them from UV radiation, and turn snow bright red.
The team collected samples from snow fields near the Ny-Ålesund research station and more remote glacial sites, which were filtered and preserved for analysis in the UK. They also studied microorganisms on site using life-detection techniques to show the live/dead cell counts, catalogue biodiversity and analyse the DNA of microorganisms.
Benning said the sensitivity of the equipment is key; if life does exist on other planets it’s likely to be in small amounts, perhaps just a few cells in a large area, so very sensitive equipment is necessary.
“It’s a little like CSI in the snow,” Benning said, “Just like a forensic team investigating a crime scene, we have to make sure were not detecting any contaminants we might have brought with us into the field.”
