Christner Research Group

Outreach

Above: Amanda Achberger shows students exteme cold weather gear during Trinity Episcopal Day School’s SMART (Science, Math, Art, Religion, and Technology) day (21 May 2014).

Participant in Louisiana State University’s Microbiology and Food Sciences 2014 summer camp. Students discussed experiences in science, the logistics of doing field work in an extreme environment, and were shown microorganisms on a scanning electron microscope.

Participant in the inaugural Math/Science Week, hosted by the LSU College of Science (July 2014). This project is designed to ignite an excitement for math and science that students can carry through middle and high school and into their college careers.

Participant in a science-based summer program sponsored by the LSU Laboratory School (3 June 2014). The students learned about the types of microbes that can live under the world’s ice sheets, got to see ice from the base of a polar glacier, and tried on extreme cold weather gear.

During spring 2013, we hosted a tour of our laboratory and cold temperature environmental rooms for AP biology students from Grant High School, Dry Prong, LA.

Featured scientist in audio segments for Hear the Answer, a media platform produced in partnership with PBS and WETA/Washington, D.C. as a premier science, environmental and technology educational resource for teachers, students, and the public. Segment 1: Why study microbial life in ice? Segment 2: How does life exist when there is no sunlight? Segment 3: What’s an internship like in Antarctica? Segment 4: What is it like to camp in Antarctica?

Featured scientist in "Invisible", a documentary special for the History Channel (January 2013), Flight 33 Productions.

Participant in the EnvironMentors program, a national college access initiative that prepares at-risk high school juniors and seniors for college degree programs in environmental and related science fields, 2011-2013.

LSU Sally Ride 2012

Above: MARSLIFE participates in the annual
Sally Ride Science Festival at LSU (22 September 2012)

Lecturer for Saturday Science at LSU, an outreach program targeting high school students, teachers, and open to the public, May 2011.

Under The Ice: Studying One of the Last Unexplored Aquatic Environments on Earth. NSTA Learning Center, May 2010.

Host of laboratory tours for the LSU BIOS program August 2007-2010, a 1 week intensive biology “bootcamp” for incoming freshmen at LSU.

Science presentation and demonstration for Louisiana high school students at the Louisiana Junior Science and Humanities Symposia, January 2010.

Participant in PolarTREC during the 2009-2010 Antarctic field season, an educational research experience, funded by the NSF and managed by the Arctic Research Consortium, in which K-12 teachers participate in a polar research experience.

Graduate student Shawn Doyle's Antarctic field blog.

Story about Shawn Doyle's outreach program with his alma mater, Sulphur High School.

Featured scientist in "Discovering Astrobiology", an Education and Public Outreach (E/PO) video project in collaboration with the Highland Road Park Telescope Observatory.

Pre-K and Kindergarten outreach program at University Methodist Preschool and South Boulevard Magnet, Baton Rouge, LA, 2009-10.

Participant in job shadow program with St. Joseph’s Academy, Baton Rouge, LA, March 2008.

Participant in POLAR/PLANET-PALOOZA, Baton Rouge, LA, November 2007.

Invited speaker for Project SCIENCE (Science Content and Investigations to Engage, Nurture and Challenge Educators) workshop, “Life on Earth... and Elsewhere? An Educator Resource Guide in Astrobiology”, September 2006.

Visit to EBR South Boulevard Elementary for Career Day, February 2010.

Research in the news:

Microbes escape wildland fires on smoke particle ‘life rafts’. UF/IFAS Blog, October 2020.

Quincy Faber awarded 2020 AGU Horton Research Grant. UF Water Institute, June 2020.

Unearthing Life in the Antarctic. Unstoppable Minds podcast, May 2020.

Travel Down a Borehole into Antarctica's Lake Mercer. Scientific American, April 2020.

'Zombie' viruses: Can they escape the thawing Arctic? E&E News, April 2020.

Cryptic remains of tiny animals have turned up in an Antarctic lake. Science News, January 2019.

Scientists drilled 3,500 feet into Antarctic ice to find a mysterious subglacial lake. Newsweek, January 2019.

Into the deep: Video reveals journey into mysterious Antarctic lake 'twice the size of Manhattan' buried under 3,500 feet of ice that could hold life. Daily Mail, January 2019.

There’s an Antarctic lake ‘twice the size of Manhattan’ buried under 3,500 feet of ice. New York Post, January 2019.

The hunt for life below Antarctic ice. Nature, December 2018.

Scientists explore Antarctic lake 'twice the size of Manhattan' buried under 3,500 feet of ice. Fox News, December 2018.

UF Ph.D. student probing beneath Antarctica’s glaciers. The Alligator, December 2018.

University of Florida student to be part of scientific expedition to Antarctica. WCJB, December 2018.

UF student preps for research trip to Antarctica. Gainesville Sun, December 2018.

UF/IFAS CALS Student to Explore Antarctic Lake with National Team. UF/IFAS Blog, November 2018.

UF student preps for research trip to Antarctica. Gainesville Sun, November 2018.

Liquid Water Found on Mars. Nova, August 2018.

Miles of Water Found on Mars. Could It Support Life? Nova, July 2018.

Why a subglacial Martian lake raises hopes for alien life. Christian Science Monitor, July 2018.

Methane-eating bacteria in lake deep beneath Antarctic ice sheet may reduce greenhouse gas emissions. NSF press release, July 2017.

Methane-eating microbes may reduce release of gases as Antarctic ice sheets melt. EurekAlert, July 2017.

Methane-eating microbes found beneath Antarctica's melting ice sheets. UF News, July 2017.

Weather bugs: microbes making rain. Radio New Zealand, July 2017.

Bacteria in the sky may help to make it rain. Popular Science, June 2017.

Invisible nature: Life in the clouds. bioGraphic, July 2016.

The surprising importance of stratospheric life. Nautilus Magazine, June 2016.

Cloud Control. New Scientist, April 2016.

Life at Hell's Gate. Scientific American, July 2015.

Discovery: Fish Live beneath Antarctica. Scientific American, January 2015.

Scientists investigate ice shelf stability at grounding zone. The Antarctic Sun, January 2015.

Vostok: Lake Under Antarctic Ice. Live Science, January 2015.

Year in review: Life thrives under Antarctica (Science News' #11 story in 2014). Science News, December 2014.

Professor finds life in Antarctic ice sheets. The Daily Reveille, September 2014.

Confirmed: 800 meters beneath Antarctic ice sheet, subglacial lake holds viable microbial ecosystems. NSF press release, August 2014.

Microbes eat rock under ice. Martyn Tranter, 2004, Nature, 512:256-257.

Lakes under the ice: Antarctica’s secret garden. Nature News, August 2014.

Bacteria rule: Life found deep beneath Antarctic ice! The Why Files, August 2014.

Confirmed: Microbial life found half mile below Antarctic ice sheet. LA Times, August 2014.

Antarctic lakes, rivers, wetlands — All under a kilometer of ice. NPR, August 2014.

Thousands of microbe species live in this buried Antarctic lake. Smithsonian, August 2014.

Microbes discovered in subglacial Antarctic lake may hint at life in space. National Geographic, August 2014.

Antarctic hides extreme ecosystem. BBC News, August 2014.

Rock-eating microbes found in buried Antarctic lake. Discovery News, August 2014.

First samples of Antarctic lake reveal thriving life. New Scientist, August 2014.

Lake under Antarctic ice bursts with life. Science News, August 2014.

Cold, dark and alive! Life discovered in buried Antarctic lake. Livescience, August 2014.

Radio New Zealand, 22 August 2014.

Antarctic microbes have astrobiologists looking to Europa. Astronomy Magazine, August 2014.

LSU associate professor on team studying life in Antarctic lake. The Advocate, August 2014.

Icy moon explorer gets an Alaska road test. New Scientist, July 2014.

Glacial microbes gobble methane. Science News, April 2014.

LSU scientist assists with research in Antarctica. WAFB, December 2013.

Government shutdown affects University science research. The Daily Reveille, November 2013.

LSU studies old ice for future insights. The Advocate, October 2013.

Colder Than Ice: Researchers Discover How Microbes Survive in Subfreezing Conditions. Scientific American Blog, October 2013.

Life under ice. Science News, September 2013.

Dara O Briain's Science Club Series. (goto 35:36) August 2013.

The Case for Alien Life. Popular Mechanics, August 2013.

Life Under Antarctica's Ice. Discover Magazine, July/August 2013.

Unlocking Secrets. EJ USA, June 2013.

Russian scientist defends Lake Vostok life claims. Nature News, March 2013.

Antarctica's "New Life": Expected, or Extraordinary? Popular Mechanics, March 2013.

Buried Antarctic lake has life. Pique NewsMagazine, March 2013.

Water from the cold underworld. The Hindu, February 2013.

Life Found Deep Under Antarctic Ice for First Time? National Geographic, February 2013.

Life found deep below Antarctic ice. Science News, February 2013.

Piercing a buried polar lake. Science News for Kids, January 2013.

NSF-funded Team Samples Antarctic Lake Beneath the Ice Sheet. NSF press release, January 2013.

Small, Small World. National Geographic, January 2013.

Mountains of Madness: Scientists Poised to Drill Through Antarctic Ice and Into Gothic Horror. Wired, December 2012.

Magical realism: WISSARD project poised to explore subglacial Lake Whillans. The Antarctic Sun, November 2012.

The High Life. ScienceNews for Kids, November 2012.

Peyton Adkins' Journey to Antarctica. LSU Research News, October 2012.

Search for Life in Antarctica's Ice-Covered Lake Takes Off. Live Science, September 2012.

Melting Glaciers Liberate Ancient Microbes. Scientific American, April 2012.

Cryobots Could Drill Into Icy Moons With Remote Fiber-Optic Laser Power. Article describing the VALKYRIE cryobot and its disruptive enabling technology. Wired Magazine, April 2012.

Life at the Edge of Space: Do high-flying microbes control Earth's weather? Cover article in April 2012 issue of Discover Magazine that features the MARSLIFE project.

Scientists Scope Out Frigid Lakes. Chemical & Engineering News, February 2012.

Scientists close to entering Vostok, Antarctica’s biggest subglacial lake. Washington Post, February 2012.

Microbes Controlling the Climate? Interview at 2011 General Meeting of the American Society of Microbiology, New Orleans, LA.

Surprising Find: Live Bacteria Help Create Rain, Snow & Hail. Live Science, May 2011

Bacteria: Blame them for the rain? Los Angeles Times, May 2011.

Research featured in First Contact: Scientific Breakthroughs in the Hunt for Life Beyond Earth by Marc Kaufman, March 2011.

Even Ordinary Microbes May Survive Radiation on Mars. Live Science, December 2010.

From Trees and Grass, Bacteria That Cause Snow and Rain. New York Times, May 2010.

Researchers Hunt Down Antarctic Microbes. Live Science, May 2010.

Antarctica shelters abundant microbial life in water miles below the icy surface. Washington Post, March 2010.

LSU scientists home from Antarctica. WVLA NBC 33, December 2009.

Making Rain. Ivanhoe Newswire, June 2009.