What do you think they will find in the lake?
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The Search for Life on…Earth!
News story originally written on November 3, 2002

Scientists are studying what lives in lakes high in the Andes Mountains to learn how life may survive in other places in the solar system.

One of the lakes is on top of a volcano in Chile. Being so far up on a mountaintop would be a tough place to live! In fact, scientists think this place is very much like Mars because there is less oxygen, more sunlight and it is very cold.

Even though it is a harsh environment, tiny life forms survive there. The scientist team hopes to learn how they survive. The team will look at the life in the lake during their trip to the Andes Mountains this month.

If we know how these life forms survive harsh conditions on Earth we will understand the ways that life may have been able to exist on Mars, or Jupiter’s moon Europa, today or in the past.


Last modified October 23, 2002 by Lisa Gardiner.

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