Monday, January 30, 2012
The bottom of a glacier is not the most hospitable place on Earth, but at least two types of bacteria happily live there, according to researchers. The bacteria -- Chryseobacterium and Paenisporosarcina -- showed signs of respiration in ice made in the laboratory that was designed to simulate as closely as possible the temperatures and nutrient content found at the bottom of Arctic and Antarctic glaciers, said Corien Bakermans, assistant professor of microbiology, Penn State Altoona. She said that carbon dioxide levels in the laboratory-made ice containing the bacteria, which were collected from glaciers in Greenland and Antarctica, indicated that respiration was occurring at temperatures ranging from negative 27 to positive 24 degrees Fahrenheit. (more)
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Ice and frozen ground at the North and South Poles are affected by climate-change-induced warming, but the consequences of thawing at each pole differ due to the geography and geology, according to a Penn State hydrologist. (more)
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
A U.S.-led, multinational team of scientists this month will investigate one of the Earth's last major unexplored places, using sophisticated airborne radar and ground-based seismologic tools to virtually peel away more than 2.5 miles of ice covering an Antarctic mountain range that rivals the Alps in elevation. Researchers from Penn State and Washington University in St. Louis will contribute to the fieldwork by using seismic recordings of earthquakes to create images of the crust and mantle beneath the mountain range. Current scientific knowledge has led researchers to conclude that the Gamburtsev Mountain range "shouldn't be there" at all. (more)
