Satellites Capture the Hidden World Beneath Antarctica's Ice
Gizmodo • • general
Key Points:
- Researchers have created the most detailed map yet of Antarctica's subglacial landscape by combining high-resolution satellite data with glacier physics, revealing tens of thousands of previously unknown hills, ridges, mountains, and canyons beneath the ice.
- The Antarctic ice sheet covers about 90% of the continent and contains around 90% of the world's fresh water, with some land pushed below sea level due to the ice's immense weight.
- Previous radar-based methods to study Antarctica's hidden terrain left many gaps, but the new approach offers unprecedented detail and helps fill in these unknown areas.
- Although the map is based on assumptions about ice flow and requires further observations for precision, it provides valuable guidance for future geophysical surveys and ice
