The University of Texas at Austin has embarked on a mission to explore the underwater edges of Greenland’s coastal glaciers to learn more about future sea level rise. The four-week expedition conducted with international partners will investigate processes that control how these giant glaciers melt and what that means for the future of the Greenland… Continue Reading Scientists Set Sail to Study Greenland Glaciers from Underwater
Progress from Delay
By Monica Kortsha Over the past four days at sea, the science team has faced the following issues: Thankfully, each obstacle has been overcome to different degrees. Pressure readings aren’t available but a probe on the coring tool is taking temperatures. The pressure-valve sealed on the second attempt, capturing a beautiful pressurized core sample, which… Continue Reading Progress from Delay
The Stuff of Life at Sea
By Monica Kortsha The mission to recover methane hydrates has scientists set on recovering core samples of the substance from over 1,000 feet beneath the seafloor. To actually reach these samples requires the science team to live and work aboard a specialized vessel named Helix Q4000. I took the helicopter out to the Q4000 on… Continue Reading The Stuff of Life at Sea
Accelerated Permafrost Melt Witnessed in Antarctica’s Dry Valleys
Ice that has existed in Antarctica since the Ice Age is melting and speeding the rate of permafrost melt — a sign that permafrost loss is a global problem Continue Reading Accelerated Permafrost Melt Witnessed in Antarctica’s Dry Valleys
Back From Totten
Even when uncontrollable circumstances keep an expedition from reaching its intended landmark, it does not mean the participants come away empty-handed. Such was the case for those involved in the Totten Expedition, a collaborative scientific research voyage into East Antarctica for about six weeks in February and March. Sean Gulick, an associate professor at the… Continue Reading Back From Totten