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Chapter Twelve - Metabolic and taxonomic diversity in antarctic subglacial environments

from Part III - Life in extreme environments and the responses to change: the example of polar environments

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 September 2020

By
Trista J. Vick-Majors ,
Amanda M. Achberger ,
Alexander B. Michaud  and
John C. Priscu
Edited by
Guido di Prisco ,
Howell G. M. Edwards ,
Josef Elster  and
Ad H. L. Huiskes
Guido di Prisco
Affiliation:
National Research Council of Italy
Howell G. M. Edwards
Affiliation:
University of Bradford
Josef Elster
Affiliation:
University of South Bohemia, Czech Republic
Ad H. L. Huiskes
Affiliation:
Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research
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Summary

Aquatic subglacial habitats occur throughout the cryosphere where basal melting is sufficient to produce aqueous environments (Priscu & Christner, 2004). Heat energy for melting of basal ice is produced by frictional heating due to glacier movement and geothermal heat flux (Fisher et al., 2015). These heat sources in concert with the lowering of the pressure melting point due to the weight and insulating properties of the overlying ice all contribute to basal ice melting.

Type
Chapter
Information
Life in Extreme Environments
Insights in Biological Capability
 , pp. 279 - 296
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2020

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