Australian researchers are one step closer to retrieving an ice core containing million-year-old air! After another successful drilling season earlier this summer, the team at Australia’s Million Year Ice Core (MYIC) project, have obtained ice cores from Antarctica dating back to the end of the last ice age 13,100 years ago.
Ancient gases from these cores act like time capsules. Analysing them could help improve the accuracy of climate change forecasts. The deeper they dig, the thinner the bands of compressed air get. This means a five centimetre sample could represent hundreds of years of greenhouse gas history. There’s a lot more to discover with at least four more digging expeditions planned until the year 2030.
The Wire’s Shaun Dourado asked Dr Daniel Baggenstos about what makes this project such a crucial piece in our understanding of the climate change puzzle.
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