Antarctica: Researchers were surprised to find a “hidden world” under the ice. Photo: NIWA / Craig Stevens
While investigating the impact of global warming in Antarctica, a group of New Zealand scientists discovered a strange one hidden world of aquatic life with rare creatures living in a “cathedral-like” cave.
About 500 meters deep under the red ice shelfexperts have found this exciting new ecosystem in which they have detected shrimp-like animals.
surprising discovery
As part of the experience, the researchers, working for the universities of Wellington, Auckland and Otago, the National Institute for Water and Atmosphere (Niwa) and the Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences, drilled through the ice shelf to the riverexplained The mirror.
After lowering a camera, they were surprised to see small shaman amphipodsorganisms that come from the same family of lobsters and crabs.
“For a while, we thought something was wrong with the camerabut when the focus was improved, we noticed a swarm of arthropods of about 5 millimeters, ”said Niwa’s Craig Stevens.
He added: “We did experiments in other parts of the ice shelf and thought we had things under control, but this time there were big surprises“.
When they lowered the camera, big surprises emerged. Photo: NIWA / Craig Stevens
According to the newspaper, the expert also added that while the analysis of climate change was an important aspect of the study, there was also an element of discovery which was essential.
“We jump for joy, because having all these animals swimming around our team clearly means that there is an important ecosystem thereStevens continued.
A place with history
The estuary was first discovered by project lead scientist Huw Horgan after seeing a furrow in the ice while studying satellite images of the Ross Ice Shelf.
Scientists were already aware of the freshwater lakes and rivers beneath the frozen continent, but these hidden features had never been analyzed directly in depth.
For the researcher, “being able to observe and take samples from this river was like being the first to do so enter a hidden world“.
In this sense, and to advance exploration, the researchers left tools inside the river to study its behavior.
An eruption on the other side of the world
Interesting, too were able to capture the changes during the massive eruption of Tongan Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano, Indian The mirror.
After seeing this impact from an eruption so far from Antarctica, Stevens said it allowed them to show themselves. how connected everything in the world is.
“Here we are, in a forgotten corner of the world, watching influencer in real time of events that have been felt in distant worlds. It was really extraordinary, “she clarified about the episode.
During the study, they saw the influence that the eruption of the Tonga volcano had. Photo: NIWA / Craig Stevens
It so happens that after the eruption, the instruments detected a significant change in pressure caused by the tsunami that made its way through the cavity.
The underwater volcano Tonga, which erupted in January, caused a earthquake of magnitude 7.4.
The earthquake sent tsunami waves which crashed into the coast of the Pacific island, which was covered in ash. These too have arrived Californiawhile evacuation warnings were issued in Australia, Japan and the United States.
Source: Clarin
