Module 5 - The Search for LifeMain MenuLife, the Universe and EverythingThe search for extraterrestrial intelligent lifeIngredients and requirements for lifeFrom Building Blocks to Self-ReplicationExtremophilesBlack SmokersMono LakeRio TintoFrom habitability to searching for signs of life on MarsLife on Venus?Life in the outer solar systemTitanAnother quick look at exoplanetsSummaryFrank Fuetendee05431475b87c68ebf15bbea4bfeac11808e9eMariek Schmidt3b678a5bd42eb8bf9a55fb761e5f17b11ce872c1
Summer at South Tufa
12016-05-04T13:16:20+00:00Frank Fuetendee05431475b87c68ebf15bbea4bfeac11808e9e151Mono Lake Committee - by Elin Ljungplain2016-05-04T13:16:20+00:00Frank Fuetendee05431475b87c68ebf15bbea4bfeac11808e9e
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1media/mono_Lake1.jpg2016-04-05T10:11:26+00:00Mono Lake14image_header2016-06-09T13:12:28+00:00 Mono Lake is a large alkaline and hypersaline lake in eastern California which is a remnant of a larger lake left over from the melting of glaciers 700,000 years ago. It is fed by inflow from the local watershed, but it has no outlet. Hence water evaporates and leaves behind dissolved salt. The scenery is undoubtedly beautiful,
but you would not want to drink the water. It has a salinity of about 81 grams per liter (g/l) or about 2 ½ times as saline as the Pacific Ocean. The water also has a pH approaching 10, which is 80 times as alkaline as the ocean, an "extreme environment". Nevertheless, this lake also hosts a thriving community of halophile (hyper saline loving) and alkaliphile (alkaline pH loving) organisms. The potentially Arsenic eating bacteria that was discussed in a previous page came from Mono Lake.
Mono Lake is one of the prime examples of thriving communities in a hostile environment. Unlike most of the locations we are discussing in this course, this is a location that you could and might actually want to visit. If so, start here.
