Latest news with #BritishAntarcticaSurvey
Yahoo
05-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
An icy new map of Antarctica could help direct the search for alien life
Where does life lurk under the ice of Antarctica? The answers keep surprising us. In January, for example, researchers found corals, sponges and even giant sea spiders some 750 feet under the waves — all suddenly unearthed when a glacier broke free during a Schmidt Ocean Institute voyage. The find is hardly unusual; in 2021, another team uncovered sponges and other species underneath nearly 3,000 feet of ice in the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf — the first time any living creatures had been found there. But with global heating and climate change wreaking havoc on the ice caps of Antarctica, researchers are looking to a new map of the south polar region to better map global warming changes and their effects on subglacial life. These efforts won't just inform how to protect these fragile ecosystems — they could act as a sort of road map for finding alien life on other worlds. Sharper satellite images helped form the backbone of Bedmap3, which updates maps of icy Antarctica — particularly among the high mountains and isolated interior of the eastern part of the continent. As the name Bedmap3 implies, this is the third map of Antarctica produced by a group led by the British Antarctica Survey (BAS); the first was done in the early 2000s. As we better map isolated and icy areas on Earth, these findings also help inform where life not only can form, but thrive. Glacial-crusted moons dot our solar system near the giant planets, most famously watery Europa near Jupiter and the fountain-spouting Enceladus near Saturn. In October, NASA launched Europa Clipper, a probe that will travel 1.8 billion miles (2.9 billion kilometers) and survey the Jupiterian moon. In a release, NASA said Europa Clipper would fly-by just 16 miles from the surface, equipped with 'ice-penetrating radar, cameras, and a thermal instrument to look for areas of warmer ice and any recent eruptions of water.' But it won't arrive until 2031 and that's only one icy world that could be home to life — most recently, it was reported that Miranda, a moon of Uranus, might be another candidate for extremophile life that can flourish under intense cold. We'll need far more spacecraft to figure out if anything living lies under the crust of these worlds, but in the meantime, Antarctica serves as a handy analog to figure out the limits of life. "The more we know about Earth's icy environments, the better we will be able to understand the other environments," said Robin E. Bell, referring to icy moons. Bell is a research professor at Columbia University who has led 10 expeditions to Antarctica and Greenland in part to study deep subglacial lakes. While not involved in Bedmap3, Bell said the study holds potential: its higher resolution will show how "the water clearly pulses between the smaller lakes, and flows uphill in the Gamburtsev Mountains, until it is refrozen to the ice sheet base," she because Bedmap3 bumps up the resolution of imaging from space – after all, satellites have much improved over the decades – as well as better defining the edge of where the ice meets the sea, Peter T. Fretwell, a BAS geographic information officer, told Salon. Fretwell was second author on a scientific paper published last month in Scientific Data describing Bedmap3's results. Each grid square on the map has a resolution of a third of a mile in length, which is a substantial improvement from Bedmap2, he noted. On that map, some of the more isolated areas had a resolution of just three miles by three miles. The community is already working on lake databases and hydrological models based on the Bedmap3 results, and anticipates using this information for ice sheet modeling, geology and better simulations of how the environment used to behave in the ancient past, Fretwell said. "We hope that these new datasets will be out shortly," he added. While Fretwell cautioned he is not an expert in lacustrine habitats, meaning large bodies of water where life may be possible, he said Bedmap3 will help inform new studies of subglacial lakes. The community will be meeting soon to go over the results, he added: "One thing that is planned is a meeting in May to look at how we go forward with future glaciological survey following on from Bedmap3." Bell is already excited for the potential, after having led teams that found a volcano underneath the west Antarctic ice sheet and that spotted several lakes embedded in ice roughly two miles thick. She said the satellites and aerial surveys that created Bedmap3 will allow researchers to better estimate how thick the ice is, particularly in transient zones where the grounded ice changes to a floating ice shelf. "Our knowledge of subglacial lacustrine environments has hinged largely on satellite measurements and radar mapping," Bell said, noting that the under-ice Lake Vostok – first suggested by Soviet sounding studies in the 1950s and 1960s – was at last confirmed in 1993 using laser altimetry from the European Remote Sensing-1 satellite. Lake Vostok is roughly 34 million years old, but Bell is among the researchers who have suggested water circulated through the microbe-filled lake roughly every 50,000 years. When Bell's study was published in 2002, the researchers noted the ice sheet and the lake depend on one another; the circulation of the lake is controlled by the ice sheet thickness, and the cycle of freezing and melting at the base of the ice controls changes in water, sediment and life. Large and small lakes alike are therefore largely affected in the zone "where the base of the ice sheet melts and where that meltwater flows," Bell said. She expects Bedmap3 will help improve the existing ice sheet models and help researchers better understanding how water flows under the thick ice of Antarctica. And perhaps, even faraway moons.
Telegraph
24-02-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
‘I moved to Antarctica to save for my first home'
When George Harris announced he was moving to Antarctica for a year, his friends and family were surprised. But it was all part of an elaborate plan to save for his first home. Living in an extremely isolated place, with few opportunities to spend money, meant he could seriously save – and have the trip of a lifetime. Harris, a carpenter, first heard about the possibility of working in Antarctica on a podcast. He discovered that the Antarctic base is not just filled with scientists – it needs a lot of support from other specialists to keep it going. He found the British Antarctica Survey (BAS) online, and his adventure began. The 27-year-old arrived in November 2023 for his job that lasted over a year. The pay is similar to what you'd get in Britain for the same work but, crucially, there is no way to spend money in the isolated outpost. 'You don't have any costs,' says Harris. 'All your food is paid for, and it's not easy to spend money. You stay at the base, and you don't pay any accommodation fees. The only thing you might spend money on is when the ship comes in or at the shop where you can buy merchandise and clothing, but not much else.' His salary was £30,200 for the year, with a 10pc bonus because he was there over winter. After paying off some debts, in total he saved £10,000. He hopes to buy a home in the next two years. 'I'm not sure where yet, but possibly near Plymouth,' he says. 'My savings would make up half of what's needed for a deposit for the average house in Plymouth, but for the size I want to buy (a two- to three-bed house), I'll probably need more.' Life on the BAS base was routine, but the role's practical tasks kept him on his toes. Alongside general maintenance and regular safety checks, he helped modernise the station, and sometimes would help scientists, such as with an 'ice coring' project. For this, he made little wooden wedges to help researchers take samples out of the ground. He also assisted repairing parts for boat rigging and remade skis for the sled to go out in the field. BAS residents were also able to use the workshop for hobby projects in their personal time. Applicants need a lot of experience because, he explains: 'It's a lot of work. You have to think of solutions on the spot.' There are limited supplies and materials, not to mention accessibility and weather conditions in the southernmost continent's unique environment. Summer can range from 5C to -10C, and winter is normally around -10C to -15C, with the coldest being -26C. For free time in the evenings and on days off, there are two TV rooms, a gym and a crafts room – Harris attempted to learn the piano. 'If the weather wasn't very good outside, which was a fair amount of time, you could go to the movie rooms, play pool or get out a board game. I went to the gym a lot as well.' There is a two drink limit at the base, so there were no drunken nights in. He adds: 'Every Wednesday, a few of us would go to the kitchen and make fresh pasta after dinner. And there were lots of events as well. They celebrated Burn's Night, Christmas and New Year's.' There was even a folk night, 'where people would take it in turn to play songs. There was a music room with lots of instruments. People played together and made bands to play at social events'. Food is a major part of life on the base. 'The food was really good in the summer – we got quite a lot of fresh food coming in off the Sir David Attenborough ship or flights as they came in and out. The chefs worked hard to get nice dishes and change up what we ate. There was always plenty of food available. In the winter, there is less fresh fruit and veg, unfortunately.' For the last two to three months of the winter period, 'it was mainly just frozen fruit and veg or tinned food. They still did really well to make nice dishes, but you definitely start running out of options. I remember having my first orange off of the plane. Having some fresh fruit was amazing'. If flights were finished for the day, or cancelled due to poor weather conditions, residents are allowed to run on the runway – a loop of 'about two kilometers with lovely views'. You could also go for a walk in 'a flagged area of about 15 kilometers where it's been deemed safe. You can ski around, take a Ski-Doo whenever you like. You just have to sign in and out and take a radio with you'. Tedium was hard to avoid entirely in the winter. 'We had six weeks of the sun not coming over the horizon,' he says. 'When it was dark and the weather was bad, there were periods of boredom. Everything you experience is amplified in this small community.' Other than the people working at the station, based on Adelaide Island, there is no one else living nearby. The isolation is extreme – to get to the base, workers fly to Santiago in Chile, travel south to Punta Arenas, and then get on BAS's Dash 7 aircraft to Rothera Research Station. In the summer, he worked eight to six every day, and a half day on Saturdays – in the winter, there's no work on Saturdays, and it's nine to five. There is also a smaller team in the darker months. 'There were 38 of us in the winter, and in the summer it went up to about 160 people, with lots more people coming and going,' he says. There are lots of different occupations on the base, science teams and boating operators, as well as chefs and station support assistance. There are on-site doctors for if anyone gets ill during their stay. If required, 'they liaised with a medical unit based in Plymouth. You would be taken back to Chile and assessed there, and it would be decided whether you'd come back or carry on to the UK'. In the winter, he says, 'it's a bit more tricky. It would depend on the severity of illness, and it could take a few weeks to be able to get a plane down to get someone taken out', due to the weather. A memorable part of Harris's experience was the wildlife. 'I saw a lot of penguins and seals. I was lucky enough to see an emperor penguin that came through the station out of nowhere one day. I also saw whales, humpback, orca and minke on recreational boat trips. You can even join the marine team when they're diving.' He says: 'I loved the adventure of it, having the opportunity to go somewhere where not many people are able to go to work and being able to come back with some money saved was a bonus. Booking a holiday to Antarctica costs around £50,000, so to be able to live there and get paid for a year was an offer I couldn't refuse.' He adds: 'It's an amazing experience. You get to see a special part of the world few can. As with any year in your life, there's always going to be ups and downs, harder times and better times. But that's what you would have if you were living at home. And in this location, it's 100pc worth it.'
