All posts tagged: Antarctic

AI reveals new insights into the flow of the Antarctic ice sheet

AI reveals new insights into the flow of the Antarctic ice sheet

Published by skeptic

As the planet warms, the Antarctic ice sheet is melting and contributing to sea-level rise around the globe. Antarctica holds enough frozen water to raise global sea levels by 190 feet, so precisely predicting how its ice sheet will move and melt now and in the future is vital for protecting coastal areas. However, most climate models struggle to simulate the movement of Antarctic ice accurately due to sparse data and the complexity of interactions between the ocean, atmosphere, and frozen surface. In a new study, researchers at Stanford University used machine learning to analyse high-resolution remote-sensing data of ice movements in Antarctica for the first time. Using AI to understand our climate reveals some of the fundamental physics governing the large-scale movements of the Antarctic ice sheet and could help improve predictions about how the continent will change in the future. Dynamics of the Antarctic ice sheet The Antarctic ice sheet, Earth’s largest ice mass and nearly twice the size of Australia, acts like a sponge for the planet, keeping sea levels stable by …

Fidlets, fingies and riding a doo: study sheds light on Antarctic English slang | Antarctica

Fidlets, fingies and riding a doo: study sheds light on Antarctic English slang | Antarctica

Published by skeptic

If you know what it means to be a “fidlet” going for a “jolly” in your “doo”, then you are part of an exclusive club that speaks colloquial Antarctic English. A New Zealand linguistics doctorate graduate from the University of Canterbury has completed a world-first study into colloquial Antarctic English, spoken at the US, British and New Zealand Antarctic research stations. While there have been previous literary studies into Antartica English vocabulary, Dr Steph Kaefer’s study marks the first time a researcher has visited Antarctica to document the unique colloquialisms used in daily life. Over three weeks in 2019, Kaefer spent time at three English-speaking Antarctic stations observing and gathering data from workers based on what the US station refers to as “The Ice”, or the British call the “South”. Initially prompted by a love of the continent, Kaefer was further inspired to investigate Antarctica’s vocabulary after reading an academic’s article discussing how newcomers to the continent were struck by the distinctive vocabulary. “Some of it was mundane, talking about the weather conditions, organisation of …

The History of Humans in the Antarctic

The History of Humans in the Antarctic

Published by skeptic

  Covered in ice and snow with sub-zero temperatures and icy blizzards, setting foot on Antarctica is a daunting task. It has claimed the lives of countless brave explorers and challenged the limits of those courageous enough to endure its hazards.   Yet the icy continent holds many secrets that keep human beings fascinated. This drive to conquer and understand the unknown has led people there to the vast, icy wastes that form the continent.   From ancient times to the present day, this is the history of humans and their interaction with this dangerous but beautiful and intriguing place.   Old Ideas and Legends Map of Antarctica. Source: Library of Congress   Long before human eyes had ever set sight on Antarctica, it was theorized to exist. Aristotle surmised that since there was a North Pole covered in ice, there must be a South Pole also covered in ice. The idea of a terra australis or “southern continent” was widespread among the Romans, who gave a thought to geography.   Get the latest articles …

Gas trapped in Antarctic ice recorded the death of 56 million people

Gas trapped in Antarctic ice recorded the death of 56 million people

Published by skeptic

A recent discovery deep within Antarctica’s ice has given scientists new clues about major world events. At the bottom of the globe, data from the last 800,000 years has been locked into the polar ice caps dubbed the Law Dome and WAIS Divide. As snow falls year after year in the coldest place on the planet, the layers are compressed into solid ice. That snow contains particulates and chemicals that get trapped within the layers—which reflects what was going on in the world at that time. “As the snow was falling, it also trapped pockets of air,” says Amy King, a research scientist for the British Antarctic Survey. By drilling into the ice, scientists can extract a long cylinder called an ice core to analyze the air and gasses from the past. “Those are a sample of the atmosphere as it was at that time. So as we drill down into the ice, we retrieve these gradually older and older air samples, trapped as bubbles, and we can therefore measure older and older atmospheric histories.” These ice cores reveal crucial missing …

Cracking open a 117-year-old Antarctic milk time capsule

Cracking open a 117-year-old Antarctic milk time capsule

Published by skeptic

As dairy alternatives such as almond, oat, and soy milk continue to grow in popularity, an centuries old question regarding cow’s milk still remains. How does today’s dairy differ from what previous generations consumed?  Some clues are now emerging in the form of some 117-year-old whole milk powder that was transported on Sir Ernest Shackleton’s British Antarctic Expedition in the early 20th Century. A study published in the March 2024 issue of the Journal of Dairy Science found that despite advancement in selective cow breeding and changes to farm practices, milk from the present and past have more similarities than differences.  The Nimrod expedition The powdered milk in the study was made by New Zealand’s Defiance brand in 1907. On New Year’s Day in 1908, Shackleton and his crew aboard the ship Nimrod set sail on a quest to be the first to set foot on the South Pole. The Nimrod was well stocked with dairy, including 1,000 pounds of dried whole milk powder, 192 pounds of butter, and two cases of cheese. The crew …

Antarctic Base Seeks Penguin Counter

Antarctic Base Seeks Penguin Counter

Published by skeptic

Best summer ever. On Froze Bored of your old office job? Looking for some excitement in your life? Look no further than a recent job posting for a penguin counter at an Antarctica post office. As spotted by the New York Post, the UK Antarctic Heritage Trust is looking for five individuals to engage in counting penguins and “sorting mail at the world’s southernmost post office” — a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity at an extremely remote location. Pen Lings While it sounds like an exceedingly lonely gig some 700 nautical miles south of the tip of Argentina, Goudier Island, where the base is located, is visited by thousands of cruise ships a year. The area was used for whaling in the early 20th century. In February 1944, the base was built as part of a British World War 2-era operation and served as a British research station until 1962. In 1995, the base became a Historic Site and Monument. The UK Antarctic Heritage Trust took over the site in 2006, and has since established a charity gift …

There are growing fears of an alarming shift in Antarctic sea ice

There are growing fears of an alarming shift in Antarctic sea ice

Published by skeptic

Is Antarctic sea ice undergoing a permanent change? Photodynamic/Shutterstock The sea ice that encircles Antarctica has reached near-record low levels for the third year in a row, raising concerns that the ice has undergone a permanent “regime shift” driven by climate change – with alarming consequences for ice shelves, Antarctic ecosystems and the global climate. Researchers say it remains unclear whether such a shift has occurred, but we may see more evidence in a matter of months. Antarctic sea ice has long defied expectations. Modellers projecting its decline were flummoxed when sea ice cover increased up to 2015, even as sea ice in the Arctic declined. Then, sea ice cover fell sharply below average the following year, reaching a record low early in 2017. That started to look like a trend as the ice set another record low in 2022, then another in early 2023. Researchers were shocked when the ice failed to recover during the Antarctic winter in the middle of last year, remaining so far below average that “our statistical models didn’t work …

Scientists discover prehistoric landscape hidden beneath the Antarctic ice

Scientists discover prehistoric landscape hidden beneath the Antarctic ice

Published by skeptic

Researchers have unearthed a relic from an age when the now icy continent of Antarctica teemed with river networks and lush vegetation. (CREDIT: Creative Commons) Beneath the vast, frigid expanse of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet, a scientific breakthrough has unearthed a relic from an age when the now icy continent of Antarctica teemed with river networks and lush vegetation. This groundbreaking discovery, spearheaded by Stewart Jamieson and his team of glaciologists at Durham University, not only paints a vivid portrait of a prehistoric Antarctica but also offers a critical tool for predicting the continent’s response to contemporary climate challenges. A Subterranean Odyssey: Probing the Past Through Ice The East Antarctic Ice Sheet, a colossal expanse of ice spanning over 10 million square kilometers, has veiled a landscape millions of years old from the inquisitive eyes of science. The research team have mapped out hidden mountain ranges, canyon systems and lakes beneath the ice in Antarctica.  (CREDIT: Durham University) But now, thanks to satellite technology, researchers have pierced through this icy shroud, revealing a terrain shaped …

Giant Antarctic sea spiders’ reproductive mystery solved after 140 years of confusion

Giant Antarctic sea spiders’ reproductive mystery solved after 140 years of confusion

Published by skeptic

The reproduction of giant sea spiders in Antarctica has been a puzzle for over a century. Studying their habits requires deep dives under thick Antarctic ice in frigid ocean temperatures. Now, a group of scientists may have finally solved the 140-year-old mystery of why the giant sea spiders lay their eggs on the bottom of the seafloor, unlike other sea spider species who carry them around. The findings are described in a study published February 11 in the journal Ecology. [Related: Sea spiders use their guts to pump oxygen through their freaky little bodies.] Polar giants Sea spiders belong to a group of invertebrates found in marine habitats around the world. These marine arthropods are in the order Pantopoda. They are related to, but not the same as land spiders who are in the order Arachnida.  While most sea spider species are smaller than a human fingernail, Antarctica’s giant sea spiders (Colossendeis megalonyx) have a leg span that is more than one foot apart. They can grow up to 20 inches wide, or the size …

What happens now bird flu has reached the Antarctic? – podcast | Science

What happens now bird flu has reached the Antarctic? – podcast | Science

Published by skeptic

The moment scientists had been dreading arrived late last year, when H5N1, or bird flu, was found for the first time in the Antarctic. Last week a king penguin on the island of South Georgia became the first in the region to be suspected to have died from the disease. The Guardian’s biodiversity reporter, Phoebe Weston, tells Ian Sample why researchers have said the spread of bird flu through the Antarctic’s penguin colonies could signal ‘one of the largest ecological disasters of modern times’ How to listen to podcasts: everything you need to know Source link