The Search for Alien Life Starts on Earth

Antarctica is home to some of the most alien places on Earth. No trees interrupt the horizon. The landscape, all sharp edges, seems to go on forever until it drops off dramatically into the frigid sea. Everything is quiet, save for the crackle of ice and gusts of wind, and unbearably cold.  

John Priscu, a microbial ecologist at Montana State University, has visited Antarctica 40 times for research since the mid-1980s. When he first made the trip, scientists weren’t as worried about climate change as they are now. But these days, Priscu can feel the planet changing beneath his feet. The snow has become noticeably mushier, and driving equipment-laden tractors across the landscape feels like slogging through thick mud. Drills meant to probe icy depths instead get stuck in the slush.

For scientists like Priscu, the effects of a warming