Freak heavy rainstorms in 2015 and 2017 wiped out many dry-adapted microbes in the Atacama Desert, useful info in the search for life off Earth. Christopher Intagliata reports.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rains Bring a Microbial Massacre to Chilean Desert

Tune in every week for quick, fascinating new developments and dives in the world of science.

Science

Meet Rachel Feltman, the new host of Science Quickly! Bringing a fresh perspective and infectious enthusiasm, Rachel will take you on audio journeys to far-off places, inspire you to ponder deep questions, and introduce you to people changing the world with science. 
Email us at sciencequickly@sciam.com if you have any questions, comments or ideas for stories we should cover!
Discover something new everyday: subscribe to Scientific American and sign up for our daily newsletter. 
Science Quickly is produced by Rachel Feltman, Kelso Harper, Carin Leong, Madison Goldberg and Jeff DelViscio. This episode was hosted by Rachel Feltman. Our show is edited by Elah Feder, Alexa Lim, Madison Goldberg and Anaissa Ruiz Tejada with fact-checking by Shayna Posses and Aaron Shattuck. The theme music was composed by Dominic Smith.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Introducing Science Quickly’s New Host, Rachel Feltman

Doctors are starting to prescribe vegetables or entire meals to ward off disease.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Can Food Work as Medicine?

Amid Earth’s fourth global coral bleaching event, a leading expert says tackling climate change is the key to fighting back.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Corals Are Once Again Bleaching En Masse, but Their Fate Isn’t Sealed

Ahead of a project to spray carbon dioxide into jungle plots, researchers contemplate what its results might signal about the forest’s future.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode 3: A Long-Awaited Climate Experiment Is Poised to Launch in the Amazon. What Will It Find?

After years of delay, researchers are ready to inject carbon dioxide into jungle plots.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rains Bring a Microbial Massacre to Chilean Desert

Download our free app to listen on your phone