Cold, dry, windy, and UV irradiated -- surveying Mars relevant conditions in Ojos del Salado Volcano (Andes Mountains, Chile)
\'A. Kereszturi, J. Aszal\'os, Zs. Heiling, Zs. Kapui, Cs. Kir\'aly,, Sz. Le\'el-\"Ossy, B. Nagy, Zs. Nemerk\'enyi, B. P\'al, \'A. Skult\'eti, Z., Szalai

TL;DR
This study surveys Ojos del Salado volcano's extreme conditions, including UV radiation, permafrost, and geothermal activity, assessing its potential for astrobiological exploration and microbial life survival.
Contribution
It provides a comprehensive characterization of Mars-analog conditions at Ojos del Salado, highlighting its suitability for astrobiology research and future exploration.
Findings
Presence of microbial communities in extreme environments
Identification of diverse microbial species in geothermal and permafrost habitats
Detection of active geothermal features like fumaroles and hot lakes
Abstract
The Special Collection of papers in this issue of Astrobiology provide an overview of the characteristics and potential for future exploration of the Ojos del Salado volcano, located in the Andes Mountains in front of the Atacama Desert in northern Chile. The main benefits of this site compared with others are the combination of strong UV radiation, the presence of permafrost, and geothermal activity within a dry terrain. The interaction between limited snow events and wind results in snow patches buried under a dry soil surface. This leads to ephemeral water streams that only flow duringdaytime hours. On this volcano, which has the highest located subsurface temperature monitoring systems reported to date, seasonal melting of the permafrost is followed by fast percolation events. This is due to the high porosity of these soils. The results are landforms that shaped by the strong winds.…
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