Radar Reveals Dynamic World Under Antarctica's Ice : NPR

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Radar Reveals Dynamic World Under Antarctica's Ice

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November 4, 2009

A NASA DC-8 plane equipped with lasers, ice-penetrating radar, and a gravity meter is revealing a dynamic and complex world beneath the massive ice sheet that covers Antarctica.

The plane is flying over Antarctica for six weeks as part of a mission to use airplanes to replace a dying NASA satellite that's been monitoring polar ice.

But the stopgap measure is providing a major scientific bonus: The DC-8 flies just 1,500 feet above the ice and carries instruments that let scientists see right through the ice.

"It's going to change the way that we look at Antarctica," says Thomas Wagner, a NASA Cryosphere Program scientist.

The Antarctic ice sheet covers an area larger than Europe. In places, it's miles thick. If the sheet ever melts, sea level will rise by dozens of feet.

Beneath The Ice

Scientists have known for years that there are volcanoes, mountains, rivers and lakes beneath the ice. But they haven't known many ...

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