They're still interesting in terms of solving particular problems. Madigan already knows that cold-loving bacteria live in at least some of Antarctica's icy waters. Madigan and Achenbach will concentrate their search more toward the center of Antarctica in a region called the Dry Valleys, an intensely cold wasteland with lakes that never thaw. Madigan has heard reports of super-salty ponds there. The two researchers had too many pre-trip preparations to make it down for this year's research season.
Planning is everything.
Before they head out, they will work with samples from the New Zealand researchers, looking for new organisms and isolating them in the lab.