Mysterious lakes in the ice – Antarctic expedition provides new insights into the melting Antarctic ice sheet

The researchers made an unexpected discovery: lakes of liquid water deep beneath the snow, around 30 metres below the surface. Using ground-penetrating radar, they were able to see clear signals revealing water-filled cavities – something that was not thought to exist there.

In a blog post on the Swedish Institute for Polar Research website, Thomas Frank, a researcher in physical geography, talks about his work in Antarctica and the observation of the underground lakes – meltwater lakes that may play a crucial role in how resistant the ice sheet is to global warming. The lakes are difficult to detect but were confirmed by drilling. The discovery may provide new knowledge about how meltwater is stored in the ice, how this affects the stability of the ice and future sea levels globally.

‘What happens in Antarctica does not stay in Antarctica – it affects the entire planet. Such lakes can affect the stability of the inland ice sheet. And if it turns out that there will be more of them after future warm summers, this is a worrying sign for global sea level rise,’ says Thomas Frank.

Using advanced measuring instruments, satellite data and fieldwork in extreme environments, the expedition is contributing new knowledge about one of the most inaccessible places on Earth – and about processes that are crucial to our understanding of the future climate. Extensive analyses and discussions will now follow, which will hopefully lead to new insights into how these ice environments in Antarctica function today – and how they may change in the future.