antarctica

Photo: David Taylor/Science Photo Library (AP)Antarctica is home to 90% of the world’s freshwater, trapped in the continent’s massive ice sheets—and the stability of much of that ice is seriously at risk from global warming. Two studies published in the journal Nature this week take a look at how climate change is shaking up conditions in ice sheets in Antarctica, spelling out the grim potential future of sea level rise.The first study looks at how Antarctica’s two ice sheets are affected by what’s going on with their ice…

Taking a firn core sample. Credit: Dr Markus Frey, British Antarctic Survey New evidence from Antarctica shows that toxic 'fluorinated forever chemicals' have increased markedly in the remote environment in recent decades and scientists believe CFC-replacements could be among likely sources. …

Researchers stationed in Antarctica have been left mesmerized by the skies brought on by the aftereffects of a volcanic eruption. The light-scattering impacts of the lingering aerosols have created otherworldly sights at the end of the Earth, captured in jaw-dropping, unedited images by science technician Stuart Shaw.The eruption behind the incredible imagery actually took place in Tonga in January. Signs of the so-called afterglow effect began to appear over New Zealand over the past couple of months, created by remnant…

Credit: NIWA Scientists working in Antarctica have captured breath-taking photos of the skies above the icy continent, including these mesmerizing shots taken by Antarctica New Zealand science technician Stuart Shaw, who is stationed at Scott Base for the winter. …

Cosmic rays are atom fragments that carry an enormous amount of energy and often affect the satellites when they enter our atmosphere. The origin of this strange phenomenon has remained elusive for scientists for over a century. Now, researchers, in a new study, have claimed of finding some clues that can shed light on the factories behind these cosmic rays.In a new study, published in Science, researchers have detected a cosmic ray offshoot called a neutrino or ghost particles. These parties are considered so evasive…

Over tens of millions of years, the wingless midge Belgica antarctica has perfected the art of freezing itself to push through the darkest and coldest of Antarctica's winter months, carving out an exclusive niche as the continent's only native insect.   As climate change nudges polar temperatures ever higher, this hard-earned set of survival skills could ironically be detrimental to its very existence, potentially driving it to the brink of extinction.Laboratory experiments conducted by a team of researchers from the US,…

When NASA's high-altitude balloon lifts off from Antarctica in December 2023 at the start of its up to four-week voyage over the South Pole, it will carry the Astrophysics Stratospheric Telescope for High Spectral Resolution Observations at Submillimeter-wavelengths (ASTHROS) telescope equipped with one of the largest mirrors ever to fly on such a high-tech gas bag.Freed from the murkiness of the Earth's atmosphere, space telescopes represent a quantum leap for astronomy that has revolutionized our understanding of the…

IceCube is an example of how big science, and particularly particle physics, now often works on generational time scales. Getting from the idea of IceCube to actually drilling its neutrino sensors into a cubic kilometer of Antarctic ice to pinpointing a high-energy neutrino source took 30 years. In that time, key personnel retired, passed away, or moved on to projects offering more instant gratification. Whitehorn’s experience is the exception, not the rule—many scientists have devoted years, decades, or even entire…

Antarctica is often considered the coldest, driest, and iciest place on Earth. Yet somehow life continues to find a way.  While global temperature changes may be fueling the melting of the polar ice caps, there is something worth celebrating in the arctic. Scientists have recently discovered a hidden world underneath Antarctica. A world that’s teeming with life. There’s a hidden world under Antarctica Image source: Wayne/Adobe The hidden world was found over 1,640 feet below the surface of the ice in…

Climate change is slowing down the conveyor belt of ocean currents that brings warm water from the tropics up to the North Atlantic.Our research, published today (June 6) in Nature Climate Change, looks at the profound consequences to global climate if this Atlantic conveyor collapses entirely.  We found the collapse of this system – called the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation – would shift the Earth's climate to a more La Niña-like state.This would mean more flooding rains over eastern Australia and worse…