A massive, trillion-ton ice chunk the size of Lake (about 5,000 square kilometers), part of the Larsen C ice shelf, broke away from the Antarctic Peninsula in July last year. As it drifted into the Weddell Sea, a large amount of water saw the light of day for the first time in 120,000 years, writes Live Science. In a few days, a team of scientists will head to the corners of this long ice area to explore the ecosystem that has been hidden beneath the ice of Antarctica for an eternity.
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The expedition is led by the British Antarctic Survey (BAS), where they say that the newly discovered seabed extends over an area of about 5,818 square kilometers. Additionally, scientists from BAS believe that this expedition is ‘urgent’ as they hope to document the ecosystem before sunlight begins to alter at least the surface layers.
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– Digging into the A-68 iceberg, which is part of the Larsen C shelf, provides us with a unique opportunity to study marine life as it reacts to dramatic changes in the environment. It is important that we get there before the underwater environment changes with the entry of sunlight into the water and new species begin to colonize, said Katrin Linse from BAS.
What Lies Beneath?
Scientists know very little about the almost ‘extraterrestrial’ life that has occurred beneath the Antarctic ice mass. What they do know comes from similar events in the past when large icebergs broke away from the Larsen A and B shelves in 1995 and 2002. Two German expeditions then discovered rare life. However, scientists took 5 to 12 years to study, and by then, creatures from other areas had already arrived.
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In other areas around Antarctica, some bizarre creatures have emerged. For example, the hairy sea worm, which normally lives in the Southern Ocean, has a throat that extends and pointed teeth. Some creatures have adapted their lives to extreme conditions, including crabs known as Lyssianasid amphipods. One of the most well-known Antarctic animals is the icefish, which has natural antifreeze in its blood and bodily fluids to survive the low temperatures of that icy seabed.
The exploration of this newly discovered marine world will begin from the Falkland Islands on February 21. Scientists plan to spend three weeks on BAS’s research vessel RRS James Clark Ross, and will use satellite data for navigation. Upon arrival at the destination, the team plans to collect samples of life – marine animals, microbes, plankton, and other beings, as well as sediments and water.
