Believing that the most arid desert in the world is located in Antarctica

You have almost 2 million years, this harsh land - the driest desert in the world can not get a rain.

Referring to the driest place in the world, we will often think of the Atacama desert in northern Chile and a small part of southern Peru. Every year, the average rainfall measured at Atacama reaches only 50mm lower.

The name "dry valley" also stems from climate reasons in McMurdo.

However, in fact, there is a more harsh and arid land than Atacama. It is the McMurdo Valley range located in Antarctica , in the Victoria Land region west of McMurdo Sound. This is also the land with natural conditions similar to most Mars.

These valleys are dry valleys and are not covered by white snow.

The desert has extremely low humidity, and the surrounding majestic mountains prevent sea ice flowing from the Antarctic ice sheet on the Ross Sea into the valley.

With a surface area of ​​about 4,800 square kilometers, the McMurdo valley makes up about 0.03 percent of the continental surface and is the largest ice-free area in Antarctica.

Wind speed blows down the valley up to 320km / hour.

Wind speed down to the valley up to 320km / h, will bring the dense cold air combined with gravity to evaporate all water, stone and snow.

The only ice blocks found here are glaciers along the valley and reservoirs including the Vida salt lake . This lake is deep under 18 meters of ice, and completely isolated from the outside world at least 3,000 years ago.

The lake freezes in McMurdo Valley.

So how will life in such a harsh place like the McMurdo Valley Range take place?

During his polar expedition, Captain Scott - a commander of the British Navy first discovered the dry valley of McMurdo in 1903.

He said that no living creature could exist in such a harsh place and call it "Death Valley".

In the Valley of McMurdo, there is no existence of plants and animals.

In the Valley of McMurdo, there is no existence of trees, rodents and mollusks like other parts of Antarctica.

In 2013, Canadian and American researchers conducted field expeditions to the valley to examine the microbial population of the area. At the same time, they also tested a permanent tape drilling device, designed to take surface specimens at points thought to be the most similar to the Martian surface.

Scientists travel by helicopter to McMurdo.

After reviewing the results, they concluded that no living organisms in the permafrost were found and recognized as the " lifeless " first place of bacteria on the planet.

Not only focusing on biology, scientists also base on the annual average temperature and the amount of melting ice at McMurdo to make meteorological assessments. As a result, they can monitor and predict global climate change developments.