When It Rains in the Atacama Desert, the Microbes There Die

Exterminating Rains
The rain fell in the Atacama Desert in Chile for the first time in hundreds of years, and it caused a mass extinction.It might seem natural to think that such rains would be followed by blooming flowers and new life. But, an international team of planetary astrobiologists found, this precipitation killed most of the microbial life in the region.“When the rains came to the Atacama, we were hoping for majestic blooms and deserts springing to life. Instead, we learned