| Hot
Desert Environments |
Adaptations
of xerophilic, heat-tolerant organisms (physiology/ecology/
reproduction). Ecosystem characteristics and dynamics. Population
and community ecology. Life detection/fossil preservation/indirect
evidence of life. |
Temperature,
light, water availability, atmospheric gases (free and enclosed),
nutrient availability, stable isotopes, nitrogen, carbon, phosphorus,
microbial/macroorganism numbers/identification, all over varying
time-scales. Organics. |
Automated
physical measurements and data logging/transmission. Real-time
enumeration of microorganisms. Automated chemical/isotopic analyses.
Subsurface sampling techniques/access. Robotic monitoring. |
Mars
series, Earth remote sensing. |
