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VIDEO

VIDEO

Life in Extreme Places

Life in Extreme Places

If life can exist in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, can it also be present on Mars?

Grades

4 - 12+

Subjects

Astronomy, Geography

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If life can exist in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, can it also be present on ?

are studying to get some clues. Extremophiles are that can in conditions, such as ice or water.

One study site is the McMurdo Dry Valleys of . The Dry Valleys are , , and mostly ice-free, since the region is protected from precipitation by the Transantarctic Mountains. This is as similar to a Martian environment as you can get without leaving .

In the 1970s, ’s Viking program sent to Mars to (studies designed to detect life in space or on another ). These test were inconclusive for life, but were conducted prior to the of extremophiles. So, expectations of where life could exist on Mars were more limited. Scientists hope that learning more about the hardy organisms in the Dry Valleys could inform future Mars missions.

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Writer
Sarah Appleton, National Geographic Society, National Geographic Society
Editor
Caryl-Sue Micalizio, National Geographic Society
Producers
Sarah Appleton, National Geographic Society, National Geographic Society
Caryl-Sue Micalizio, National Geographic Society
other
Last Updated

October 19, 2023

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Funder
National Geographic Channel