Researchers identify the first evidence of microbial respiration in desiccated Antarctic permafrost soils.
bacteria & microbes
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Microbes May Thrive in Subsea Permafrost Long After Flooding
Two cores from the East Siberian Arctic Shelf reveal how microbial communities develop over thousands of years as submarine permafrost slowly thaws.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Antarctic Microbes Shape Nutrient Content of Snowmelt
As temperatures continue to rise, snow-dwelling microbes could accelerate melting and influence downstream ecosystems.
Posted inNews
Plague Bug May Have Lurked in Medieval England Between Outbreaks
A new analysis of climate records in England and Europe’s Low Countries suggests that the disease-causing bacterium persisted in rodents between recurrences in people.
Posted inAGU News
How Do Microbial Ecosystems and Climate Change Interact?
The American Society for Microbiology and the American Geophysical Union offer insights from a transdisciplinary collaboration of their scientists regarding this question and areas for further study.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Tiny Creatures Form Massive, Bright Ring Around Antarctica
Dense algae populations in the Great Calcite Belt could cause carbon dioxide release from the ocean into the atmosphere.
Posted inNews
Soil Bacteria Could Help Absorb Natural Gas Leaks
For the first time, new research examines the response of terrestrial soil microbes to a massive natural gas blowout and offers hope for new remediation strategies.
Posted inNews
How Did Fragile Early Microbes Become Fossils?
During the Ediacaran period more than a half billion years ago, clay mineral coats likely shielded delicate remains, helping them become exquisitely preserved in rock, recent experiments suggest.
Posted inNews
Bacteria Preserve Record of Earth's Magnetic Fields
Tiny yet stable magnetized particles created by microbes long ago could help scientists better determine the strength and orientation of ancient magnetic fields.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
A New Mechanism for Nitrogen Cycling in the Southern Ocean
A nitrite-oxidizing enzyme may work in reverse for some microbes in the Antarctic autumn.