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☆ Meteorites may be lost to Antarctic ice as climate warms, study says
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-10 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Ice sampling occurs on a blue ice area during the 2022 Chilean Antarctic Institute field mission. “As the climate continues to warm, Antarctic rocks are sinking into the ice at an increasing rate. Meteorites are particularly plentiful in blue ice fields. Steven Goderis/Vrije Universiteit BrusselResearchers have identified areas of meteorite-rich blue ice mostly by luck. “The main worry is the logistical aspect of searching for Antarctica meteorites, which is already difficult today due to the remoteness of Antarctica.

Persons: Maria Valdes, ”, Valdes, Robert A, “, José, wasn’t, Balchenfjella, Steven Goderis, Veronica Tollenaar, ” Valdes, Tollenaar, ” Tollenaar, Harry Zekollari, Katherine Joy, Matthias van Ginneken, van Ginneken, Kevin Righter, Righter Organizations: CNN, Field, University of Chicago, Pritzker Center, Meteoritics, Polar Studies, Antarctic Institute, University of Santiago, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Université Libre de Bruxelles, University of Manchester, University of Kent’s, Astrophysics, NASA Johnson Space Center Locations: Antarctica, Chile, Vrije, Université, Belgium, Houston

☆ There's another missing submersible: A $3.6 million vessel mysteriously disappeared near Antarctica's 'Doomsday Glacier'
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-07 | by ( Ellyn Lapointe | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The submersible was exploring the Thwaites Glacier to study its potential effects on sea-level rise. Ran's disappearance is a tragic loss for climate change research as scientists were using the autonomous machine to study the melting activity of Thwaites Glacier, also known as the "Doomsday Glacier." AdvertisementThat's why Wåhlin and her team chose Ran to check out Thwaites Glacier because it's actively melting. The Thwaites Glacier is one of the largest in the world and could raise global sea levels significantly if it collapses entirely. AdvertisementA gigantic cavity nearly 1,000 feet tall growing at the bottom of Thwaites Glacier in West Antarctica.

Persons: Ran, Thwaites, It's, Anna Wåhlin, Olof Lönnehed, University of Gothenburg Ran, Wåhlin, NASA Thwaites, Louise Newman, Jeremy Harbeck, Aaron, Newman Organizations: University of Gothenburg, Service, Titan, NASA, University's Department of Marine Sciences Locations: Antarctica, West Antarctica

☆ I spent Christmas and New Year's Eve on a cruise with a few family members. I don't think I'd ever do it again.
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-16 | by ( Erin Yarnall | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

I spent the holidays away from home for the first time by going on a 22-day cruise over Christmas. I woke up on Christmas to views of Antarctica but missed my traditions and the rest of my family. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . But this year, I spent Christmas and New Year's Eve on a 22-day Holland America cruise around South America and Antarctica. I traveled with my grandma and cousin, and our cruise began in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and ended in Santiago, Chile.

Persons: —, I've, Erin Yarnall Organizations: Service, Holland America, Southern Locations: Antarctica, Holland, South America, Buenos Aires, Argentina, Santiago , Chile, Aysén, Chile, Puerto Madryn, Chicago, Puerto Aysén, Santa, Antarctica's, Shetland

☆ The world's largest iceberg is now sailing away from Antarctica
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-04 | by ( Sean Conlon | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailThe world's largest iceberg is now sailing away from AntarcticaRecent satellite images show an iceberg roughly three times the size of New York City floating past the northern tip of the Antarctic Peninsula. According to the British Antarctic Survey, the berg named A23a is now likely to be swept along by the Antarctic Circumpolar Current into 'iceberg alley.' Once hosting a Soviet research station, A23a split from West Antarctica's Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf in 1986.

Persons: berg, A23a, Antarctica's Organizations: British Antarctic Survey, Antarctic, Ronne Ice Shelf Locations: Antarctica, New York City, Soviet

☆ Extreme sleep behavior documented in cute Antarctic chinstrap penguins
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( Will Dunham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Guarding their nests is serious business for these medium-sized penguins, with predatory seabirds called brown skuas on the prowl. But this species, scientists said on Thursday, has devised an ingenious way of getting sufficient sleep without compromising vigilance. The researchers documented extreme sleep behavior in these flightless birds. "Penguins do not display any obvious negative consequence of sleep fragmentation," Libourel said. During incubation, skuas prey on penguin eggs, particularly on a colony's periphery.

Persons: chinstraps, ecophysiologist Paul, Antoine Libourel, Won Young Lee, George Island, Libourel, Lee, Will Dunham, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: Lyon Neuroscience Research, Korea Polar Research, GPS, Penguins, Thomson Locations: Lyon, France, Korea, Incheon, Washington

[1/2] A satellite imagery of the world's largest iceberg, named A23a, seen in Antarctica, November 15, 2023. Courtesy of European Union/Copernicus Sentinel-3/Handout via REUTERS Acquire Licensing RightsNov 24 - The world's largest iceberg is on the move for the first time in more than three decades, scientists said on Friday. At almost 4,000 square km (1,500 square miles), the Antarctic iceberg called A23a is roughly three times the size of New York City. This will funnel it toward the Southern Ocean on a path known as "iceberg alley" where others of its kind can be found bobbing in dark waters. "Over time it's probably just thinned slightly and got that little bit of extra buoyancy that's allowed it to lift off the ocean floor and get pushed by ocean currents," said Marsh.

Persons: berg, Oliver Marsh, it's, Gloria Dickie, Olga Vyshnevska, William Maclean Organizations: European, Copernicus, REUTERS Acquire, Antarctica's, Ronne Ice Shelf, British Antarctic Survey, Antarctic, Thomson Locations: Antarctica, New York City, Soviet, Weddell, A23a, South Georgia, South Africa, London

☆ The world's biggest iceberg is on the move after 37 years, and it could threaten wildlife
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A23a, the world's biggest iceberg, is on the move 37 years after it broke off from Antarctica. Scientists will keep a close eye on it as it could threaten wildlife near South Georgia Island. AdvertisementThe world's biggest iceberg, covering about 1,500 square miles, is on the move. NASA WorldviewA23a lost its title of world's biggest iceberg in May 2021, but jumped ahead once again in October 2022, when the previous record-holder, A76, broke into three pieces, per the Guinness World Records website. A gentoo penguin with a newborn chick South Georgia.

Persons: —, A23a, Andrew Fleming Organizations: Ocean, Service, BBC, British Antarctic Survey, NASA, Records, Getty Locations: Antarctica, South Georgia, Weddell, Soviet, Georgia

☆ 9 passenger airliners that have landed on Antarctica's rugged runways made out of blue ice
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( Taylor Rains | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

These planes land on rugged, unpaved runways mostly made of blue ice and compacted snow. PrivatAir's Boeing 737 and Smartwings' Boeing 737 MAXA Smartwings 737 MAX on Antarctica in January 2022. It was the first time the jet type landed on one of the continent's blue ice runways. Another Loftleider 757 is set to ferry Antarctic Ice Marathon runners to Union Glacier this December. Loftleider Icelandic Airlines' and Titan Airways Boeing 767Titan Airways' Boeing 767 on Antarctica.

Persons: —, George Hubert Wilkins, Glenn Jacobson, PrivatAir, NPI, Tim Hewette, Troll, Fang, Patrick Woodhead Organizations: Atlantic Airways, Boeing, Service, Lockheed Vega, Airbus, Australian Antarctic, Australian, Skytraders, Australian Antarctic Program, McMurdo, AAP, Norwegian Polar Institute, Swiss, NPI, Boeing's, Airlines, Titan Airways, Antarctic Logistics, Expeditions, Antarctic Logistics & Expeditions, Antarctic Ice, Russian Antarctic, Titan Airways Boeing, Norse Atlantic Airways, Emirates, White Desert Locations: Antarctica, Skytraders, Christchurch , New Zealand, Hobart, Australia's, Tasmania, Cape Town , South Africa, Czech, Chile, Russian, NPI, Norway, Cape Town, Russia's

Canada Goose parkas, which can cost upwards of $1,900, are sported by Oscar winners, Olympians and Arctic explorers. "When you buy a Canada Goose jacket, you're buying a piece of Canada. Here's how Canada Goose began, grew to billion-dollar status and plans to survive consumer uncertainty. Canada Goose jackets, with their iconic shoulder patches, are such a status symbol that people who wear them are sometimes the target of robberies. "We realized that we could make jackets that are just as good without fur as with fur," Reiss says.

Persons: Dani Reiss, Oscar, Reiss, Goose, Sam Tick, Bean, Eddie Bauer, Reiss's, David Reiss, Canada Goose Organizations: Canada, CNBC, Metro Sportswear Ltd, Antarctica's, Lacoste, University of Toronto, Conservation Alliance, Bain Capital, New York Stock Exchange, People, Animals Locations: Wells, Canada, Poland, Snow, Europe, Asia, paychecks, Toronto, New York

☆ Seals with funny hats discovered a hidden canyon over a mile deep under Antarctica and scientists want to honor the animals by naming it after them
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-07 | by ( Maiya Focht | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Scientists put trackers on Antarctic seals to help them map the ocean floor. The deep-diving seals revealed a massive underwater canyon over a mile deep. This canyon may help scientists predict how the Antarctic ice sheet will react to climate change. Joseph MarlowUnderstanding ocean geography helps scientists predict how Antarctica's ice sheet has reacted to global climate change in the past. Antarctic seals, like the 50 Weddell seals and 215 southern elephant seals they tagged, regularly travel to great depths of the ocean.

Persons: Clive McMahon, aren't, they're, Joseph Marlow, Fausto Ferraccioli Organizations: Service, Sydney Institute of Marine Science, East, NBC, Australian Center for Excellence, Aquatic, Seals, Australian Antarctic Program Locations: Vincennes Bay, Antarctica

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — The watchdog office overseeing the National Science Foundation is sending investigators to Antarctica's McMurdo Station after hearing concerns about the prevalence of sexual violence at the U.S. research base. It announced Friday it is appointing Renée Ferranti as a special assistant to the NSF director to focus on sexual assault and harassment prevention and response. The NSF told the AP the alcohol changes were related to morale and welfare, and were not aimed at preventing sexual harassment or assault. On Friday, NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan said he was delighted to welcome Ferranti, who had more than 25 years of experience in sexual assault prevention. Ferranti said in the release she hopes “to make a meaningful impact to advance NSF's progress in addressing sexual violence.”

Persons: Renée, Lisa Vonder Haar, Vonder Haar, they’d, Sethuraman Panchanathan, ” Panchanathan, Ferranti, “, ” Organizations: National Science Foundation, NSF, Renée Ferranti, Associated Press, McMurdo, AP, Ferranti Locations: WELLINGTON, New Zealand, Antarctica

☆ Researchers discovered a hidden Antarctic landscape under a layer of ice over a mile thick that shows how different the continent looked millions of years ago
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( Jenny Mcgrath | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Researchers recently found an "undiscovered landscape" beneath Antarctica's ice. But between 14 million and 34 million years ago, an ice sheet crept across the continent. It locked some of the lush landscape beneath over a mile of ice, per NBC News. This helped the researchers determine the height of peaks and depths of valleys that lay hidden beneath the ice. A rewarming AntarcticaIt's crucial to understand how warming temperatures will impact Antarctica's ice.

Persons: Stewart Jamieson, Jamieson Organizations: Service, NBC, Agence France, Live, Nature Communications, Reuters There's, Guardian Locations: Antarctica, Maryland, East Antarctica, Patagonia

☆ Ancient landscape formed by rivers revealed deep under Antarctic ice
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-24 | by ( Will Dunham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Researchers said on Tuesday they have detected buried under the continent's ice sheet a vast ancient landscape, replete with valleys and ridges, apparently shaped by rivers before being engulfed by glaciation long ago. Ancient palm tree pollen has been discovered from Antarctica, not far around the coast from our study site," Jamieson added. Some previous studies similarly have revealed ancient landscapes beneath Antarctica's ice including mountains and highlands, though the landscape discovered in the new study was the first of its type. Right before 34 million years ago, Antarctica's landscape and flora likely resembled today's cold temperate rainforests of Tasmania, New Zealand and South America's Patagonia region, Ross added. When that ice growth occurred, the conditions between the base of the ice and the landscape changed to become very cold - and in this way it was no longer able to erode our landscape.

Persons: Stewart Jamieson, Antarctica's, Jamieson, Neil Ross, Ross, Will Dunham, Daniel Wallis Organizations: Durham University, Handout, REUTERS, Rights, Antarctica, Nature Communications, Newcastle University, Thomson Locations: Belgium, Wilkes Land, East Antarctica, Antarctica, East Antarctica's Wilkes Land, ., Maryland, England, Patagonia, Greenland, Tasmania , New Zealand, South, Africa, South America, Australia

The study, published in the journal Nature Climate Change on Monday, found no matter the degree of warming this century, the melting of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet will speed up as warmer water in the Amundsen Sea erodes ice shelves bordering the ocean. These ice shelves buttress ice further inland, acting as a cork in a bottle that stops their flow into the ocean. The collapse of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet is one of nine global climate 'tipping points' scientists identified in 2009. If the ice sheet were to fully melt, average global sea levels would rise by more than a metre. Antarctic Sea ice saw its lowest maximum extent on record this winter.

Persons: Lauren Dauphin, Kaitlin Naughten, Tiago Segabinazzi Dotto, Gloria Dickie, Ros Russell Organizations: NASA, REUTERS, British Antarctic Survey, West, National Oceanography, Thomson Locations: Antarctica, Handout, Amundsen, London

☆ 6 ways humans are transforming Antarctica from a pristine preserve to a polluted wasteland
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-30 | by ( Rupendra Brahambhatt | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Antarctica was once a pristine preserve, but humans are ruining it. And this past winter, the frozen continent reached record-low sea ice levels. USGS"This region is nearing a threshold of rapid landscape change," researchers noted in 2017. Pauline Askin/ReutersAnd depending on the location, that ice melt could turn up some pretty nasty stuff. What's even more worrisome is that "human impacts are disproportionately concentrated on the most environmentally significant areas of Antarctica," the researchers noted.

Persons: It's, Emma MacKie, Eric Rignot, MacKie, Pauline Askin, huskies — that's, Sharon Robinson, Auscape, Logan Pallin, Wolfgang Kaehler, Rignot Organizations: Service, University of Florida, University of California, NASA, Reuters, huskies, University of Wollongong, ABC News, Tourists, University of Colorado Boulder, British Atlantic Survey, University of San Locations: Antarctica, Irvine, Beaufort, Antarctica's Ross, Australia, Antarctica ., Santa Cruz, Georgia, University of San Francisco

☆ Scientists finally finished mapping Earth's 8th continent Zealandia, helping them solve the lost continent's mysterious history
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-30 | by ( Jenny Mcgrath | Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

AdvertisementAdvertisementAfter decades of work, a team of scientists has finally completed a map of Zealandia. But that didn't deter scientist Nick Mortimer, who led the team that's been studying Zealandia for over 20 years. AdvertisementAdvertisementIn a new study, the team finished mapping the final piece of the continent, the northeast corner. As a result, the scientists believe they've mapped Zealandia more thoroughly than any other continent on Earth. AdvertisementAdvertisementDecades of work establish Zealandia as a continentSome have argued Zealandia isn't a continent because so much of it lies below the water.

Persons: Zealandia, they've, —, It's, Nick Mortimer, that's, it's, Mortimer, quartzites, Simone Giovanardi Organizations: Service, GNS Science, Massey University Locations: Australia, New Zealand, South Zealandia, Fairway, Zealandia, New Caledonia, North Zealandia, Antarctica, South America, Africa, India, West Antarctica

☆ No quick fix to reverse Antarctic sea ice loss as warming intensifies, scientists say
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-08 | by ( David Stanway | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Penguins are seen on an iceberg as scientists investigate the impact of climate change on Antarctica's penguin colonies, on the northern side of the Antarctic peninsula, Antarctica January 15, 2022. There's no quick fix to replacing this ice," said Caroline Holmes, polar climate scientist at British Antarctic Survey and one of the study's co-authors. The precise impact of climate change on Antarctica and the surrounding ocean has been uncertain and scientists have struggled to measure how much global warming is affecting the thickness of Antarctic ice. "Antarctica is fragile as an environment, but extreme events test that fragility," he said. "What we're deeply concerned about is the increase in intensity and frequency of extreme events and the cascading influences that they have in other areas."

Persons: Natalie Thomas, Caroline Holmes, Tim Naish, " Naish, Martin Siegert, Siegert, David Stanway, Edmund Klamann Organizations: Penguins, REUTERS, Environmental, Antarctic Survey, Antarctic Research, Australia's Victoria University of Wellington, Global, University of Exeter, Thomson Locations: Antarctica, SINGAPORE, New Zealand, Australia

☆ Antarctic sea ice has been at record low levels for months — here's what that means
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Catherine Clifford | In Catclifford | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Xinhua News Agency | Xinhua News Agency | Getty ImagesAntarctic sea ice has been at record low levels for the past few months. What the record low sea ice in the Antarctic meansZoom In Icon Arrows pointing outwards The blue line sows the amount of sea ice in the Antarctic in 2023. Why the sea ice levels in the Arctic are more damningThe Arctic is an ocean covered by a layer of sea ice and surrounded by land. So the change below the surface in the Arctic sea ice is much more pronounced than the change in Antarctic sea ice," Meier told CNBC. While the sea ice does not directly contribute to sea level rise, melting land ice does.

Persons: That's, it's, Walt Meier, Howard Diamond, Diamond, Will Hobbs, Hobbs, Meier, Kerem Yucel, that's, Notz Organizations: Antarctic, Xinhua News Agency, Getty, Data, University of Colorado, CNBC, U.S . National, Resources Laboratory, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder Cooperative Institute for Research, Environmental Sciences, Australian Antarctic Program, NASA Gulfstream, University of Texas, Afp, NOAA Locations: Southern Ocean, Antarctica, New York City

☆ With neutrinos, scientists observe our galaxy in a whole new way
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( Will Dunham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

[1/2] An artist's composition of the Milky Way seen with a neutrino lens (blue) is shown in this undated handout image. Scientists said on Thursday they have produced an image of the Milky Way not based on electromagnetic radiation - light - but on ghostly subatomic particles called neutrinos. Neutrinos are produced by the same sources as cosmic rays, the highest-energy particles ever observed, but differ in a key respect. They released an illustration of their findings with neutrinos from the Milky Way represented by light, with a heavy concentration at the galaxy's core. "The most likely source of neutrinos and cosmic rays in our galaxy," Taboada added, "are the remains of past supernova explosions.

Persons: Lily Le, Shawn Johnson, Ignacio Taboada, Francis Halzen, Taboada, Naoko Kurahashi Neilson, Halzen, Will Dunham, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: . National Science Foundation, REUTERS, Georgia Tech, of Wisconsin, Drexel University, Thomson Locations: REUTERS WASHINGTON, Philadelphia

☆ The ‘breakout travel trend’ of the decade: What to know about expedition cruising
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Helen Iatrou | Chris Dwyer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Instagram posts — which often showcase trips to Antarctica — may have given expedition cruising more publicity, but this form of cruising isn't new. Today, there is stiff competition among expedition cruise lines to launch more technologically advanced vessels and to secure onboard talent. Source: Aurora ExpeditionsNoah Brodsky, chief commercial officer of Lindblad Expeditions-National Geographic, described expedition cruising as the "breakout travel trend of the decade." Expedition cruising is also a good option for the growing number of solo travelers. "Unfortunately, this has meant the new expedition cruise ships have become larger and the expedition experience itself has been sacrificed," he told CNBC.

Persons: LIND, Costa, Greg Mortimer, Carlo Raciti, Bronwyn Stephenson, Aurora expeditioner, Lindblad, Mensun, Robert Bindschadler, Hayley Peacock, Gower, Aurora's Hayley Peacock, Noah Brodsky, James Cole, Hillary, Cousteau, Shackleton, Cole, Xers, hadn't, Carl Raciti, Andrew Marsh, Commandant Charcot, Stefanie Schmudde Organizations: Aurora Expeditions, Panama's UNESCO, Expeditions, Lindblad Expeditions, NASA, Aurora, Geographic, CNBC, Expedition, Cruisers, Environmental, Abercrombie, Kent Locations: Australia, Panama, Costa Rica, Aurora, Antarctica, Its, Greenland, Alaska, Galapagos, French Polynesia, Western, Kimberley, Central, South America

☆ Rising Antarctic ice melt will dramatically slow global ocean flows, study finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( David Stanway | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Natalie Thomas/SINGAPORE, March 29 (Reuters) - Rapidly melting Antarctic ice is dramatically slowing down the flow of water through the world's oceans, and could have a disastrous impact on global climate, the marine food chain and even the stability of ice shelves, new research has found. The "overturning circulation" of the oceans, driven by the movement of denser water towards the sea floor, helps deliver heat, carbon, oxygen and vital nutrients around the globe. But deep ocean water flows from the Antarctic could decline by 40% by 2050, according to a study published on Wednesday in the journal Nature. Ocean overturning allows nutrients to rise up from the bottom, with the Southern Ocean supporting about three-quarters of global phytoplankton production, the base of the food chain, said a second study co-author, Steve Rintoul. Reporting by David Stanway; Additional reporting by Gloria Dickie in London; Editing by Alex RichardsonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ The Earth has tilted on its axis differently over the last few decades due to melting ice caps
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( Aylin Woodward | Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Earth's axis — the invisible line around which it spins — is bookended by the north and south poles. But their geographic locations aren't fixed: As the Earth's axis moves, so do the poles. If you average out thousands of years of observation the Earth's axis points in a single direction — toward the North Star, also known as Polaris. The recent change to Earth's axis won't affect our everyday lives, but it could slightly tweak the length of our days. But let's be clear that this would be a tiny, tiny, tiny effect," he said.

☆ The most dangerous cruise routes, ports, and destinations are in parts of the world where conditions are unpredictable — and help is nowhere nearby, travel analysts say
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Erin Snodgrass | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

But some cruise destinations and routes are prone to dangerous conditions and risky activity. These are some of the most dangerous cruise locations around the world. AntarcticaThe world's southernmost continent is among the most beautiful — and dangerous — cruise destinations, according to Chiron and Klein. Cruise passengers during a lifeboat drill in the Northwest Passage near Nunavut, Canada. National Park Service via APCruise lines avoid dangerous portsWhile rough seas and high winds can make ocean travel dangerous, uncertainties on land pose their own risks for visitors.

[1/3] An Icefin is seen in the water as scientists work in the field at the Thwaites Glacier in Antarctica in this undated handout picture obtained by Reuters on February 14, 2023. Becka Bower/Cornell University/Handout via REUTERSMEXICO CITY, Feb 15 (Reuters) - Scientists studying Antarctica's vast Thwaites Glacier - nicknamed the Doomsday Glacier - say warm water is seeping into its weak spots, worsening melting caused by rising temperatures, two papers published in Nature journal showed on Wednesday. As part of the International Thwaites Glacier collaboration - the biggest field campaign ever attempted in Antarctica - a team of 13 U.S. and British scientists spent about six weeks on the glacier in late 2019 and early 2020. "Warm water is getting into the weakest parts of the glacier and making it worse," Schmidt told Reuters. Scientists have previously depended on satellite images to show the behavior of the ice, making it difficult to get granular details.

☆ As ice recedes, Italian ship makes record journey into Antarctic
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

ROME, Jan 31 (Reuters) - An Italian ice-breaker carrying scientists researching in the Antarctic has sailed further south than any ship has done before, the organisers of the voyage said on Tuesday, a further sign of how ice is retreating around the poles. The Laura Bassi vessel reached a point with the coordinates of 78° 44.280 S in the Bay of Whales in the Ross Sea, according to Italy's National Institute of Oceanography and Applied Geophysics. The voyage was made possible by an unusual lack of ice in the area, it said. Satellite analysis last year showed that Antarctica's coastal glaciers are shedding icebergs more rapidly than nature can replenish. A previous voyage with a different vessel to the same area in 2017 came up against impenetrable ice, he said.

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