Featured Image Credit: British Antarctic Survey
By: Sarah Sharkey
The British Antarctic Survey is about to set sail on an exciting new voyage, to a place where literally no man has ever gone before. A group of scientists is gearing up to explore a patch of sea that has been under ice for 120,000 years. The strip of seabed the researchers intend to explore is 5,000 square kilometers and was recently revealed after the Larsen C Ice Shelf A68 iceberg began to calve in July 2017.
The explorers are watching and waiting in the hopes that the iceberg will continue to move away from this uncharted patch of seabed. The scientists will rely on satellite imagery and observational flyovers to navigate because this area of sea has never actually been seen by humans.
The researchers are extremely excited to study the newly uncovered ecosystem. The current plan is to sail there in the RRS James Clark Ross in February of 2018, before the newly exposed area changes too much.
Lead researcher, Dr. Katrin Linse, says “ We have a unique opportunity to study how marine life responds to a dramatic environmental change. All we need now is for the iceberg to move far enough away from the remaining shelf and the sea ice to melt so that we can navigate safely. It’s exciting to think about what we might find.”
Learn more from our source.