A peer-reviewed article describing this discovery appeared in the leading international journal Journal of Asia-Pacific
Professor Felix Bast, biologist who participated inA six-month expedition to the continent, discovered a dark green view of the Larsemann Hills overlooking the Southern Ocean in January 2017. This place is located near Bharati, one of the most remote research stations in the world.
Plants need nitrogen to survive, andpotassium, phosphorus, sunlight and water. Only 1% of Antarctica is ice-free. "The big question was how the moss survives in this landscape of rocks and ice," the scientists noted.
Scientists have found that this moss grows mainlyin places where penguins breed in large numbers. Penguin droppings contain nitrogen. “Basically, the plants here survive on penguin droppings. This is facilitated by the fact that manure does not decompose in this climate, ”says Professor Bast.
Biologists have discovered a flower that smells like dead insects
Scientists say they still don't understand how plants survive under a thick layer of snow during the six months of winter. At this time, there is no sunshine, and the temperature drops to -76 ° C.
Scientists believe it is likely that at this time the mossdries to a dormant stage and is reborn in September, when sunlight begins to fall on it again. The dried moss then absorbs water from the melting snow.
After collecting the samples, Indian scientists spentfive years for sequencing the plant's DNA and comparing its shape with other plants. Today, Antarctica, the driest, coldest and windiest continent, has over a hundred species of mosses documented.
Read more
A resident of Turkey accidentally found traces of an unknown civilization in the courtyard of the house
Data from spy satellites helped to find out the cause of melting glaciers in Asia
How an underwater fire broke out in the Gulf of Mexico and what it could lead to