DECEPTION ISLAND, Antarctica - Earth’s past, present and
future come together here on the northern peninsula of Antarctica, the wildest,
most desolate and mysterious of its continents. Clues to answering humanity’s most basic questions are locked in this continental freezer the size of the US and half of Canada: Where did we come from? Are we alone in the universe? What’s the fate of our warming planet?
The first explorers set foot in Antarctica 194 years ago hunting 19th century riches of whale and seal oil and fur, turning tides red with blood.
Since then, the fist-shaped continent has proven a treasure chest
for scientists trying to determine everything from the creation of the cosmos
to how high seas will rise with global warming.“It’s a window out to the universe and in time,” said Kelly Falkner, polar programme chief for the US National Science Foundation.
For a dozen days in January, in the middle of the chilly Antarctic summer, The Associated Press followed scientists from different fields
searching for alien-like creatures, hints of pollution trapped in
ancient ice, leftovers from the Big Bang, biological quirks that potentially
could lead to better medical treatments, and perhaps most of all, signs of
unstoppable melting. The journey on a Chilean navy ship along the South Shetland Islands and vulnerable Antarctic Peninsula, which juts off the continent like a broken pinky finger, logged 1,340 kilometres, and allowed the AP team a first-hand look at part of this vital continent.
Antarctica conjures up images of quiet mountains and white
plateaus, but the coldest, driest and remotest continent is far from dormant.
About 98 per cent of it is covered by ice, and that ice is constantly moving.Temperatures can range from above zero in the South Shetlands and Antarctic Peninsula to the unbearable frozen lands near the South Pole. As an active volcano, Deception Island is a pot of extreme conditions.
There are spots where the sea boils at 100 degrees Celsius, while in others it can be freezing at below zero degrees Celsius. And while the sun rarely shines on the long, dark Antarctic winters, night-time never seems to fall on summer days.
Source: The Washington Post...More...
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