An international team of scientists announced on Thursday that they have successfully drilled one of the oldest ice cores ever, reaching nearly 2 miles (2.8 kilometers) down to the Antarctic bedrock to extract ice estimated to be at least 1.2 million years old. The analysis of this ancient ice is expected to shed light on the evolution of Earth’s atmosphere and climate, providing insights into changes in Ice Age cycles and the impact of atmospheric carbon on climate.
Carlo Barbante, an Italian glaciologist and coordinator of the Beyond EPICA project, which led the drilling effort, stated that the ice core will help scientists understand changes in greenhouse gases, chemicals, and atmospheric dust. Barbante also serves as the director of the Polar Science Institute at Italy’s National Research Council.
Previously, the team drilled an ice core that was about 800,000 years old. The latest effort, which reached a depth of 2.8 kilometers (about 1.7 miles), involved 16 scientists and support staff working during summer seasons over four years in temperatures averaging minus-35 degrees Celsius (minus-25.6 degrees Fahrenheit).
Italian glaciologist Federico Scoto, part of the team that completed the drilling in Antarctic in early January at Little Dome C near Concordia Research Station, described the achievement of reaching the bedrock as a significant moment. Isotope analysis confirmed the ice’s age to be at least 1.2 million years old.
Barbante and Scoto noted that previous ice core analyses showed that greenhouse gas levels, including carbon dioxide and methane, never surpassed the levels seen since the Industrial Revolution, even during the warmest periods of the last 800,000 years. Barbante highlighted that current carbon dioxide levels are 50% higher than any recorded in that period.
The Beyond EPICA project, funded by the European Union and supported by various European countries, is coordinated by Italy. Richard Alley, a climate scientist at Penn State and a recent recipient of the National Medal of Science for his work on ice sheets, praised the achievement, emphasizing the importance of ice core studies in understanding past climate conditions and human impact on climate change. He added that reaching the bedrock could offer additional insights into Earth’s history beyond the ice record.
“This is truly, truly, amazingly fantastic,” Alley said, expressing excitement about the potential discoveries.
