Antarctica’s native insect, the Antarctic Midge is a flightless insect that can survive nine months frozen at temps of at least negative 15 degrees Celsius. It loses about 70% of its body fluids and can live for about a month without oxygen. The midge survives because of its combination of rapid cold hardening and warm temperatures in its underground habitat. […]
Read more
A new NASA study on the Antarctic Ice Sheet says that an increase in Antarctic snow accumulation that began 10,000 years ago is currently adding enough ice to the continent to outweigh the increased losses from its thinning glaciers. The research challenges the conclusions of other studies, including the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) 2013 report, which says that […]
Read more
The continued melting of the West Antarctic ice sheet is progressing faster than expected, and the resulting rise in sea levels will have a global impact.The stark new findings point to a potential sea-level rise of up to 10 feet or more in the coming centuries. This increase in the global sea-level will threaten many major cities, including New York, […]
Read more
The frigid continent of Antarctica could prove to be the next location to become a geopolitical battleground, as China announcedthat it is preparing to build its first permanent airfield at the South Pole. The location, about 17 miles away from the Zhongshan Antarctic Station, was surveyed by the 33rd Antarctic expedition in 2017 and will “greatly facilitate the nation’s research […]
Read more
According to a new study by Nasa, Antarctica’s Larsen B ice-shelf is on course to completely disintegrate within the next five years. Studies show that the 10,000-year-old ice shelf, after partially collapsing in 2002, is “quickly weakening.” “These are warning signs that the remnant is disintegrating,” said Ala Khazendar of Nasa’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California. “Although it’s […]
Read more
You might not be a resident of Antarctica, but “no biggie”, say artists Lucy and George Orta. They’re giving out Antarctica passports, anyway. You can apply for an Antarctica passport online through the Antarctica World Passport program. In 1959 the Antarctic Treaty stipulated that the southernmost continent “shall continue forever to be used exclusively for peaceful purposes and shall not become […]
Read more
Deep beneath Antarctica’s thick ice sheet, hidden from sunlight for millions of years, lies Lake Vostok – one of the most mysterious and scientifically intriguing places on Earth. This sub-glacial lake, buried under more than two miles of ice, could hold vital clues about life’s ability to exist in extreme environments, including the possibility of extraterrestrial organisms on icy moons […]
Read more
Scientists have found some radioactive dust from a supernova that landed in Antarctica when a star exploded millions of years ago. The radioactive dust from a supernova was discovered under thousands pounds of snow. They are hoping to be able to find out a lot more about the history of our galaxy. Especially how the cosmic environment ended up surrounding […]
Read more
Dec. 4, 2021, total solar eclipse from Union Glacier, Antarctica. Watch the entire total solar eclipse. Video Live-streamed by Nasa.
Read more
An expedition team in Antarctica has successfully cleared away layers of thick ice from inside the hut of the famous Australian explorer Sir Douglas Mawson, revealing a century-old frozen bowl of peas, books on the shelves, candles, matches and “old-style woolen underwear”. The team used picks and chainsaws to remove the ice that had filled the main living quarters used […]
Read more