Australian scientists shedding light on Antarctica's melting glaciers
8 years, 5 months ago

Australian scientists shedding light on Antarctica's melting glaciers

ABC  

Australian researchers are hoping the first voyage of the Antarctic summer season on board the icebreaker Aurora Australis will help them better understand how melting glaciers are impacting sea level rise. "Since we had the ship go aground in Mawson Harbour we've done a really good review with P & O Maritime into that event and so we have tightened up and changed some of our procedures and weather parameters," Mr Clifton said "It's a really big summer for us, we'll have around 500 expeditioners travelling south and we're implementing around 95 different projects." Glaciologist Ben Galton-Fenzi said researchers had never before been able to go on top of the Totten Glacier, which is the largest in East Antartica. "If I took all the ice that could contribute to Antarctic sea level and turned it into an ice cube, we're talking about an ice cube that would be 108 kilometres in each dimension, so it's a very big glacier," he said.

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History of this topic

Living through Antarctic snowstorms, Australian scientists are undertaking some of the 'most ambitious' research
1 year, 2 months ago

Living through Antarctic snowstorms, Australian scientists are undertaking some of the 'most ambitious' research

ABC  

In a whitewashed corner of one of the world's coldest continents, 27 Australian scientists are living in tents and working to solve 500 years of climate clues. Key points: The Denman Terrestrial Campaign is a three-year project being carried out by the Australian Antarctic Division Scientists are working to piece together 500 years of climate history It has been labelled …

Warm water melts weak spots on Antarctica’s ‘Doomsday Glacier’
2 years, 1 month ago

Warm water melts weak spots on Antarctica’s ‘Doomsday Glacier’

The Hindu  

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. Using an underwater robot vehicle known as Icefin, mooring data and censors, they monitored the glacier's grounding line, where ice slides off the glacier …

Warm water melts weak spots on Antarctica’s ’Doomsday Glacier’
2 years, 1 month ago

Warm water melts weak spots on Antarctica’s ’Doomsday Glacier’

Live Mint  

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. Using an underwater robot vehicle known as Icefin, mooring data and sensors, they monitored the glacier's grounding line, where ice slides off the glacier …

Antarctica Doomsday Glacier: ‘We should all be very concerned’
2 years, 1 month ago

Antarctica Doomsday Glacier: ‘We should all be very concerned’

Al Jazeera  

Melting of the Florida-sized glacier is of grave concern, with the potential for significant global sea level rise. Scientists studying Antarctica’s vast Thwaites Glacier – nicknamed the “Doomsday Glacier” – say warm water is seeping into its weak spots, threatening its demise and a massive sea rise. “That is the kind of thing we should all be very concerned about.” …

Australian Antarctic Division prepares to drill million-year-old ice core to understand ice age shift
3 years, 6 months ago

Australian Antarctic Division prepares to drill million-year-old ice core to understand ice age shift

ABC  

The Australian Antarctic Division is preparing for what it says will be its most ambitious expedition season, as it chases the world's first million-year-old ice core sample. Key points: The Australian Antarctic Division has plans to drill the world's first million-year-old ice core sample Chief scientist Nicole Webster says it means scientists will be able to reconstruct past climate conditions …

Global sea levels could rise two feet as Antarctica's 'Doomsday Glacier' melts FASTER than expected
3 years, 11 months ago

Global sea levels could rise two feet as Antarctica's 'Doomsday Glacier' melts FASTER than expected

Daily Mail  

Thwaites glacier in Western Antarctica is warming and melting faster than previously thought. Scroll down for video Thwaites glacier in Western Antarctica is warming and melting faster than previously thought Observations were collected by the uncrewed submarine Ran that made its way under the glacier, which forms part of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet. Observations were collected by the uncrewed …

Australian Antarctic Division unveils drill that will tell us what the weather was like 1 million years ago
5 years, 6 months ago

Australian Antarctic Division unveils drill that will tell us what the weather was like 1 million years ago

ABC  

Technicians have developed a drill that will plunge 3 kilometres down into an Antarctic ice cap to extract the world's oldest continuous ice core, revealing what the weather was like 1 million years ago. Key points: Scientists hope the ancient ice will tell them why the length of time between ice ages has increased The drill is 9 metres long …

Scientists discover a network of lakes beneath the largest glacier in East Antartica
6 years ago

Scientists discover a network of lakes beneath the largest glacier in East Antartica

Firstpost  

Researchers undertake seismic studies to find out if there is bedrock or water. Scientists have discovered a network of lakes beneath the largest glacier in East Antarctica, a finding that may be critical in predicting how the melting of polar ice will change the world’s oceans in the future. Researchers of the Australian Antarctic Program have undertaken seismic studies to …

Climate change impact on Antarctica becomes clearer as scientists make progress with research
7 years, 1 month ago

Climate change impact on Antarctica becomes clearer as scientists make progress with research

ABC  

Understanding exactly what is going on in Antarctica has long been fraught for climate scientists, but what is happening on the continent could soon be felt around the world. On the time scale of this century, which will be in the lifetime of young adults texting away today, sea level rise attributed to just the Antarctic is projected to be …

Antarctic's melting glaciers could be about more than warmer temperatures
8 years, 1 month ago

Antarctic's melting glaciers could be about more than warmer temperatures

ABC  

An Australian team of international scientists is hoping to discover whether there's something more than warmer temperatures could cause Antarctic's glaciers to melt faster than expected. Key points: Scientists concerned that meltwater is hastening glacier disintegration in Antarctica Meltwater gets under the ice through cracks and crevasses, speeding up glacier flow Three quarters of all Earth's freshwater is stored in …

Antarctic research into warm water causing rapid glacial ice melt
8 years, 3 months ago

Antarctic research into warm water causing rapid glacial ice melt

ABC  

Scientists hope to discover how warm water is reaching one of the world's largest glaciers, causing it to melt rapidly when they arrive in East Antarctica later this month. "This is very important to know because the glacier's grounding line acts as a sort of plug that restricts the rate of ice flow, and helps hold back massive volumes of …

Antarctic program to get $255 million from Government to boost research
8 years, 11 months ago

Antarctic program to get $255 million from Government to boost research

ABC  

The Federal Government has flagged it will spend $255 million on Australia's ongoing Antarctic program over the next decade, in a move it says will bolster the scientific presence on the icy continent. Key points: $255 million to be spent next decade on science and logistics projects Greg Hunt says a peaceful southern ocean is critical to Australian security $38 …

Million-year-old ice the 'holy grail' of climate research in Antarctica
9 years ago

Million-year-old ice the 'holy grail' of climate research in Antarctica

ABC  

The mission to unlock the secrets of Antarctica's deep, old ice will be a major feature of a week-long climate science conference in Hobart. "It's about halfway between a very long ice core record that was drilled inland by the Europeans and a record we had at the coast," Dr van Ommen said. "Things that are really important for the …

East Antarctica’s biggest glacier is melting from below, study says
9 years, 4 months ago

East Antarctica’s biggest glacier is melting from below, study says

The Independent  

Sign up to the Independent Climate email for the latest advice on saving the planet Get our free Climate email Get our free Climate email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. East Antarctica’s enormous Totten Glacier, you see, has a key similarity with the glaciers of West Antarctica — namely, …

Fears sea levels could rise as 'concerned' scientists find signs huge Antarctic glacier is melting
10 years ago

Fears sea levels could rise as 'concerned' scientists find signs huge Antarctic glacier is melting

ABC  

New aerial ice studies have given scientists an unprecedented insight into how one of the world's largest glaciers is melting. The Totten Glacier drains an area twice the size of Victoria, so there's an awful lot of ice in there, grounded below sea level, so it's got a fair potential for sea level rise. Dr Tas van Ommen said that …

Research uncovering why Antarctic ice shelves are disappearing faster than first thought
10 years ago

Research uncovering why Antarctic ice shelves are disappearing faster than first thought

ABC  

Scientists in Australia and China have a new understanding of how climate change and warming oceans are shrinking Antarctic ice shelves. What we do know is that climate change is already affecting some of the ice shelves and there will be an increase in sea level rise due to this. "As these ice shelves - the floating part of the …

Antarctica's Totten Glacier 'melting from below', Australian scientists find
10 years, 2 months ago

Antarctica's Totten Glacier 'melting from below', Australian scientists find

ABC  

Warm ocean water is melting one of the world's biggest glaciers from below, potentially leading to a rise in sea levels, Australian scientists have discovered. Australian icebreaker Aurora Australis recently returned to Hobart from Antarctica, with a team of 23 scientists who had used new technology to collect the first water samples near the Totten Glacier. According Australian Antarctic Division …

Warm water likely to accelerate Antarctic ice melt and sea level rises, Australian scientists find
10 years, 8 months ago

Warm water likely to accelerate Antarctic ice melt and sea level rises, Australian scientists find

ABC  

Warm water is likely to increasingly displace cold water around the Antarctic coastline, prompting accelerated ice melt and more sea level rise, according to new Australian research. "What you usually have is cold water sitting next to the ice shelves at about minus 2 degrees Celsius and then warm water further out," said Paul Spence from the Climate Change Research …

Exploring Antarctica › Science Features (ABC Science)
16 years ago

Exploring Antarctica › Science Features (ABC Science)

ABC  

In Depth › Science Features Exploring Antarctica Much has changed in the hundred years since Australian explorer Sir Douglas Mawson first located the South Magnetic Pole, yet Antarctica still holds challenges for modern scientists. Sir Douglas Mawson took a plane to Antarctica in 1911 as a media stunt to promote his expedition, says Dr Ian Godfrey, field leader and chief …

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