'Blood waterfall': 106-year mystery in Antarctica has just been decoded by science

Discovered more than 100 years ago, "Waterfall of blood" in Antarctica is one of the places that makes explorers and scientists most interested.

Recently, a group of researchers from two American Universities, Alaska Fairbanks and Colorado, claimed to have deciphered the century mystery of the "Blood Falls" in Antarctica.

Discovered by British geologist Griffith Taylor (1880 - 1963) in 1911, the Taylor ice valley (named after him) in East Antarctica became one of the harsh lands discovered by explorers and houses. science most interested.

Because in the valley of this isolated Taylor glacier appears a strange, blood-red waterfall that many scientists call "Blood Falls". Over 100 years have passed, many explanations are given.

"Blood waterfall" in the Taylor glacier valley.(Photos: Wikipedia.)

Once discovered, geologist Griffith Taylor said that the red color of the water is caused by an algae. Later, explorers said that about 1.5 million years ago, there was a saltwater lake containing iron, which was covered by ice.

New discovery at the "Blood waterfall" line in Antarctica

But the story is different when researcher Jessica Badgeley (of the University of Colorado) and the glacier Erin Pettit and colleagues (of Alaska Fairbanks School) have a completely new discovery. Using specialized equipment, scientists discovered secrets in a lake 400 meters deep.

Jessica Badgeley explains: "Blood red saltwater is an ecosystem of ancient bacteria trapped millions of years underground. Without sunlight, the temperature touches minus 5 degrees Celsius and triple salinity. the sea still doesn't kill them, they are rare autotrophs on Earth . "

The red color of "Blood Falls" is the result of precipitation of iron oxide when salt water carries less stable iron oxide exposed to oxygen in the air.

The red color of "Blood Falls" is the result of precipitation of iron oxide when salt water carries less stable iron oxide exposed to oxygen in the air.(Photo: WordPress.com.)

In the summer, the temperature in Antarctica is warmer, which makes the lake water have a chance to emerge. That's why we see the strange "Blood Falls" flowing until today.

The glacier Erin Pettit added: " With the" listening "device echoing from the lake below the 400m thick ice sheet, like an eared bat to" see "everything in the dark, we" look " See what happens in this saltwater lake.

It is hard to believe that a liquid lake exists below the cold ice below 0 degrees. Interestingly, the lake contains these highly salty iron so it cannot freeze. And that liquid lake becomes an ecological environment for ancient autotrophs. The bacteria can live in super-salty and extremely cold water, extremely high iron concentrations, not knowing what sunlight is. It turns out they have such a strong vitality, careful study of these microorganisms will be able to give us a way to deal with extreme environments, such as the Universe, for example. "

"The first discovery led us to more discoveries and more explanations," said researcher Martin. "The Antarctic girl hasn't revealed the whole secret she's still hiding."

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The results were published in the Journal of Glaciology.