A huge hole has formed in the Antarctic ice sheet. Scientists have no idea what caused this.
Polynya
According to scientists who have discovered the giant wormwood using satellite images, its size exceeds the territory of the Netherlands. In September, the size of the polynya was 60 thousand square kilometers, and the largest it was a little earlier - 80 thousand square kilometers.
Scientists claim that polynyas regularly form in the ice sheet, but such sizes and locations far from the edge of the glacier are extremely rare.
In the 70s, in the expanses of the frozen Weddell Sea, an ice hole was formed, five times larger than the current size.
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Study
Scientists are concerned about the fact that they cannot closely examine the wormwood and cannot even guess what is the cause of its formation and how exactly it is formed.
Researchers are preparing to send remotely piloted underwater vehicles to the region capable of investigating conditions both at the surface of the water and at depth.
One of these devices managed to surface right in the very ice hole. Now scientists are investigating its size and changes and are preparing to make the first assumptions about the reasons for its formation.
Unlike the first giant polynya that appeared 40 years ago, today scientists can collect much more information.
Causes
The polynya was formed hundreds of kilometers from the edges of the glacier, and without satellite imagery it would have been virtually impossible to detect. When looking at the pictures before and after the hole appeared in the ice, it seems that someone with a giant fist punched a hole in the ice cover.
Scientists suspect that the emergence of polynya is directly or indirectly related to the effect of global warming. Antarctica is today the continent most affected by climate change.
Hope Chikanchi