Massive Amounts of Water Detected Beneath Surface of Antarctica
Massive Amounts of Water Detected Beneath Surface of Antarctica
Massive Amounts of Water Detected, Beneath Surface of Antarctica .
Researchers published their evidence of a vast system of groundwater beneath the ice of West Antarctica in the journal 'Science' on May 5.
The discovery marks the first time such a system has been discovered on the continent.
The region is relatively unexplored.
The research points to how Antarctica will fare under a climate crisis.
People have hypothesized that there could be deep groundwater in these sediments, but up to now, no one has done any detailed imaging, Dr. Chloe Gustafson, Lead Author of Study, via CNN.
Antarctica contains 57 meters (187 feet) of sea level rise potential, , Dr. Chloe Gustafson, Lead Author of Study, via CNN.
... so we want to make sure we are incorporating all of the processes that control how ice flows off of the continent and into the oceans, Dr. Chloe Gustafson, Lead Author of Study, via CNN.
Groundwater is currently a missing process in our models of ice flow, Dr. Chloe Gustafson, Lead Author of Study, via CNN.
This means that while scientist have been aware that numerous bodies of water exist within the ice shield of Antarctica, .
There might be water contained in the sediments below the cap that had not been confirmed.
Researchers estimate the amount of water contained in the sediment to be equal to a lake anywhere from 220 to 820 meters in depth.
The Empire State Building up to the antenna is about 420 meters (1,378 feet) tall, Dr. Chloe Gustafson, Lead Author of Study, via CNN.
At the shallow end, our water would go up the Empire State Building about halfway.
, Dr. Chloe Gustafson, Lead Author of Study, via CNN.
At the deepest end, it's almost two Empire State Buildings stacked on top of each other.
, Dr. Chloe Gustafson, Lead Author of Study, via CNN.
This is significant because subglacial lakes in this area are two to 15 meters (6.6 to 49 feet) deep.
That's like one to four stories of the Empire State Building, Dr. Chloe Gustafson, Lead Author of Study, via CNN