The researchers managed to drill two wells into the bowels of the Antarctic glaciers, and now they intend to work on the ground until mid-February. This will help them more accurately determine future sea level rise.
A team of scientists and engineers from the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) successfully drilled more than two kilometers of West Antarctica ice sheet using hot water for the first time. As a result of this event, researchers will be able to study how the region will respond to climate warming.
A team of 11 people have been working on the Ratford Ice Stream over the past 12 weeks at a temperature of minus 30 degrees Celsius. After 63 hours of continuous round-the-clock drilling, scientists were able to create a well 2152 meters deep. With its help, researchers, using special devices and tools, collected data on water pressure, ice temperature and its deformation around the site.
The project, which was named BEAMISH, was in development for 20 years, and in 2004, the first, unsuccessful attempt was made.
The research team has been working in West Antarctica since November 2018 / British Antarctic Survey.
“I have been waiting for this moment for a very long time and I am extremely glad that we have finally reached our goal. There are many gaps in our knowledge of West Antarctica's processes, and by studying areas where ice resides on soft sediments, we can better understand how this region may change in the future, contributing to global sea level rise. - Leading BAS scientist Andy Smith comments on his achievement.
The research team managed to drill two wells (the first was ready on January 8, the second on the 22nd), and now scientists plan to work on the ground until mid-February. Keith McInson, physical oceanographer at BAS, already knows that warmer ocean waters are destroying many of West Antarctica's glaciers. Scientists are now trying to understand how slippery the surface under these glaciers is and, therefore, how quickly they can break off the continent and enter the sea. According to scientists, this will help to more accurately determine and predict the future rise in the level of the World Ocean and the role of West Antarctica in this process.
Dmitry Mazalevsky
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