Collaborative Research: RAPID: Catalyzing a Joint US-NZ Spectral Repository of Antarctic Photoautotrophs in the Face of Ongoing Environmental Shifts

This project will generate a comprehensive database linking the biogeochemical properties of Antarctic land-based ecosystems in the McMurdo Dry Valleys to their spectroscopic properties that can be detected by drones, aircraft, and satellites. The multi-technique and multi-scale approach of this project will enable scaling from local observations to landscape-level patterns and will create a standardized monitoring framework compatible with global observation networks such as the National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON), ensuring interoperability and long-term scientific value. The urgency of this work is driven by its alignment with the Catalyst Strategic New Zealand—United States Joint Antarctic Research Programme, which creates a unique and time-critical opportunity for collaboration between two nations at the forefront of Antarctic research. This opportunity addresses the immediate need to synchronize methodologies, share infrastructure, and initiate joint data collection. The Catalyst program is structured to accelerate integration of U.S. and New Zealand capabilities, reduce duplication, and establish a foundation for sustained monitoring of terrestrial ecosystems. This project also contributes to the training of an undergraduate student in the development of cutting-edge drone operations and spectroscopy skills.

Coordinated sampling/data collection, lab analyses, and remote sensing investigations will be conducted to generate a comprehensive database of the morphological, spectral, and genetic characteristics of Antarctic photoautotrophs. These efforts will enable both spatial and temporal studies of photoautotrophic activity by bridging plot-, local-, and regional-scale remote and in situ observations. Newly collected and aggregated data will be statistically assessed to more accurately predict the suitability and distribution of photoautotrophic habitats. The project will focus primarily within Taylor Valley and the Pyramid Trough regions of the McMurdo Dry Valleys, which have long been studied for their unique terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems and observed change over time. They represent the greatest expected responses by vegetation to changing environmental conditions and glacial melt activity among sites easily accessible from Ross Island. This project will identify essential spectral, ecological, and landscape variables that underpin the detection, spatial expansion, and community succession of key photosynthetic biota in the greater McMurdo Dry Valleys. These variables will have been collected to approximate the technical capabilities of the NEON Airborne Observation Platform (AOP) to maximize the potential synergies and impact of this work. This project will provide an improved understanding of the combinations of environmental and spectral variables that correlate with important ecological attributes such as diversity, evenness, and functional traits, laying a foundation for enhanced capabilities to generate spatially explicit and climate-scenario-bound projections of vegetations that are arguably the most useful sentinel biota for change in Antarctic terrestrial ecosystems.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

Award Number: 2607498
Principal Investigator: Eric Sokol
Funds Obligated: $54,741
State: OH