The wetlands and salt flats of the Central Andes region are unique extreme environments as
they are located in high-altitude saline deserts, largely influenced by volcanic activity …

The Atacama Desert, northern Chile, is one of the driest deserts on Earth and, as such, a
natural laboratory to explore the limits of life and the strategies evolved by microorganisms …

In this paper, we report the presence of sedimentary microbial ecosystems in wetlands of the
Salar de Atacama. These laminated systems, which bind, trap and precipitate mineral …

The scarcity of liquid water in the hyperarid core of the Atacama Desert makes this region
one of the most challenging environments for life on Earth. The low numbers of microbial …

Microorganisms inhabiting gypsum have been observed in environments that differ greatly
in water availability. Gypsum colonized by microorganisms, including cyanobacteria …

In the Kebili region of southern Tunisia, there is increasing demand of water from the Lower
Cretaceous Continental Intercalaire (CI) aquifer and the Upper Cretaceous-Miocene …

Abstract Chott El Jerid is the largest hypersaline ephemeral lake in southern Tunisian
Sahara desert and is one of the biggest depressions at the North of Africa. This study aimed …

Gale Crater was an ancient Martian lake that has periodically filled with water and which
may still provide a watery environment conducive to the proliferation and fossilization of a …

Wind erosion is a major threat to the sustainability of arid and semi-arid ecosystems. In these
environments, biological soil crusts positively impact soil resistance to erosion. Less is …

Abstract The Atacama Desert (Chile), one of the most arid places on Earth, shows hostile
conditions for the development of epilithic microbial communities. In this study, we report the …