Research performed by Eugene Domack, Johnson Professor of Environmental Studies, and his students during a recent expedition to Antarctica is highlighted in the National Science Foundation's 2006 annual report along with a photograph taken by geosciences technician Dave Tewksbury.
During the expedition, Domack conducted a marine survey of the seabed exposed by the 2002 collapse of the Antarctica's Larson Ice Shelf. According to the National Science Foundation (NSF) report, "Apart from increasing our understanding of how ice shelves collapse, important for understanding the sea level change associated with global warming, the [Domack] team also discovered a whole new type of ecosystem. Apparently, clams, bacterial mats, and other marine life existed beneath the ice shelf. The thick ice above would have prevented sunlight from reaching the area, so rather than photosynthesis, this system's primary food producers are chemotrophs, possibly existing on methane seeps. This is the first time such a ecologic system has been observed in a cold region. Other chemotrophic systems are generally associated with hot areas such as volcanism on the sea floor."
The results of the expedition were covered in various ways, from the covers of Nature and EOS to some popular articles, and even radio, including international programs. The NSF considers Domack's work especially notable because, "This research has many strengths, but it is also easily communicable to the public because of the exciting discovery involving life. … This work involves transformative research. This was truly exploratory research."
During the expedition, Domack conducted a marine survey of the seabed exposed by the 2002 collapse of the Antarctica's Larson Ice Shelf. According to the National Science Foundation (NSF) report, "Apart from increasing our understanding of how ice shelves collapse, important for understanding the sea level change associated with global warming, the [Domack] team also discovered a whole new type of ecosystem. Apparently, clams, bacterial mats, and other marine life existed beneath the ice shelf. The thick ice above would have prevented sunlight from reaching the area, so rather than photosynthesis, this system's primary food producers are chemotrophs, possibly existing on methane seeps. This is the first time such a ecologic system has been observed in a cold region. Other chemotrophic systems are generally associated with hot areas such as volcanism on the sea floor."
The results of the expedition were covered in various ways, from the covers of Nature and EOS to some popular articles, and even radio, including international programs. The NSF considers Domack's work especially notable because, "This research has many strengths, but it is also easily communicable to the public because of the exciting discovery involving life. … This work involves transformative research. This was truly exploratory research."
