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| Above, OSU glaciologist Lonnie Thompson and University of Texas botanist Blanca Leon examine deposit of ancient alpaca moss recently exposed by the retreat of the Quelccaya ice cap in the Peruvian Andes. The deposit was covered some 5,200 years ago as the ice cap expanded. Recent warm periods in the region uncovered large mats of the moss. Below, a closeup image showing the ancient moss and a sample of its modern cousin. A black, felt-tip marker is shown for scale. |
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| Below, graduate student Aron Buffen, left, Thompson, center, and Benjamin Vicencio, right, inspect the area around the margin of the Quelccaya ice cap flowing off the Quelccaya ice cap near where he found beds of ancient moss uncovered by the retreating ice. The large slabs of ice in the foreground were washed up onto the shore as the edge of the glacier calved. |
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