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The Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) program, sponsored by the National Science Foundation, monitors ecological phenomena in a range of environments. The program supports 16 sites in North America and two in Antarctica, including the newest site in the McMurdo Dry Valleys—one of the most extreme deserts on Earth. The McMurdo LTER, headed by Dr. Robert Wharton, Jr. (Desert Research Institute), is the coldest and driest site. The study attempts to understand two processes: the influence of physical and biological constraints on dry valley ecosystems, and the effects of material transport on these ecosystems.

Resources and Links

Case Study Summary

Application

Research on the influence of physical and biological constraints on dry valley ecosystems, and the effects of material transport on these ecosystems.

Location

McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica

Products Used

CR10  21X 

Contributors

Peter Doran, graduate research assistant, biological sciences, Desert Research Institute (DRI), Reno, Nevada

Participating Organizations

National Science Foundation

Measured Parameters

Level, temperature, conductivity of iced lakes; soil temperature; discharge, conductivity, and temperature in streams; eddy covariance

Related Website

*McMurdo LTER Home Page*

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