Antarctica is paradoxically the driest continent on the planet, despite holding most of the Earth’s freshwater. In these conditions, water availability governs distribution, health, and survival of vegetation on the continent. This relationship remains poorly understood due to extreme weather, remoteness and logistical challenges. This limits research access and long-term observations which have resulted in a fragmented understanding of how water availability shapes Antarctica’s photoautotrophs. This systematic review analysed 113 peer-reviewed studies published between 1990 and 2025 using a PRISMA 2020 approach. The inclusion criteria comprised of studies only in Antarctica where both water availability and photosynthetic life were discussed. Studies went through two screening stages, firstly, the title and abstract were screened, then a more in-depth look at the whole study to determine relevance. This review identifies methodological trends and gaps in scientific studies that examine how water availability influences photosynthetic life in Antarctica and evaluates the potential and consistency of the methods used across these studies. While water was frequently cited as an important environmental factor, few studies directly quantified its availability or ecological influence. The spatial distribution of the studies assessed showed that 69 studies were tied to specific sites, 27 covered multiple locations, and 17 were reviews or did not specify location. Approximately 65% of all studies included fieldwork, ranging from field data collection for later analysis to fully field-based investigations. Research is temporally restricted to short summer surveys because that is the most accessible and logistically feasible period for data collection. The reliance on short-term sampling, varied definitions of water availability, and inconsistent use of remote sensing and modelling approaches have made it difficult to synthesise findings or predict broader ecosystem responses. These inconsistencies point to a need for more standardised, scalable methods that can link fine-scale ecological processes to wider environmental patterns.

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