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Licancabur 2002 Mission Highlights

Analysis of the data from the 2002 Licancabur mission is still taking place. Below is a list of selected highlights from last year’s expedition:

  • On November 3, 2002, the science team of the 2002 Licancabur expedition reached the summit at 6,014 m. During the mission, as well as the climb up the mountain, an educator from the United States accompanied the scientists to the top and his experiences were shared with thousands of children through across the 2 continents. This virtual field experience allowed students to ask the scientists questions directly while they conducted experiments in the field.
  • Two former NASA Ames Astrobiology Academy students (2000 and 2001) make the team --and the summit-- as co-investigators on this project led by their former mentor, Dr. Nathalie Cabrol.
  • Educational and Public Outreach activities were conducted events in Chile at a High School and an Elementary School in Antofagasta right after the ascent, sharing the excitement of discovery with nearly 200 children.
  • The microbial population of the summit lake is being unraveled and show elements of a food web. Life is diverse, with 22 taxa being identified so far. Analysis is still being conducted.
  • Hints of residual heat source in the summit lake. The volcano is not extinct!
  • At the summit and at the lagunas, data loggers and UV gazer chambers were placed to study the impact of UV on life.
  • The exploration of lower saline lakes (Laguna Blanca and Laguna Verde) at 4,300 m unravels the unique diversity of a ~15,000 year old ≥100 km2 field of fossil biogenic stromatolites. Cyanobacteria colonies are still leaving in the lagunas today and building small structures as well. This is a window in time looking into the evolution of very ancient forms of life, a clue to our own past.
  • Samples reveal that the rate of deformities and malformation in the
    diatoms species living in the shallow lagunas is 10 times superior than
    in other lakes. We suspect UV as the prime suspect.
  • A species of diatom rarely found alive at present is discovered thriving in Laguna Blanca.
  • A species of diatom known to be living only in the Baltic Sea is discovered for the first time in South America and in a lake (Laguna Blanca).