A Brobdingnagian Antarctic lake has mysteriously vanished , taking with it duplicate the loudness of San Diego Bay as it disappeared into the sea . Researchers witnessed its dying from planet mental imagery before and after the 600–750 million - cubic - meter ( 21–26 billion cubic feet ) lake drained through the frappe ledge below , and consider it could order scientists a lot about the constancy of enceinte body of ice in the neighborhood .
All that persist is the fractured natural covering of ice and a crater where the lake once stand .
Although the researchers are n’t on the nose trusted how the lake vanished in such a short amount of time , the most likely scenario is the bottom of the lake fracture under the intense pressure . Their research was put out in the journalGeophysical Research Letters .
“ We believe the weight of water accumulated in this deep lake opened a crack in the ice ledge beneath the lake , a process known as hydrofracture , causing the piss to drain away to the ocean below , ” said lead author Roland Warner , a glaciologist with the Australian Antarctic Program Partnership at the University of Tasmania , in astatement .
Situated pointing towards the South Indian Ocean , the Amery Ice Shelf is the third - largest ledge in Antarctica , with some areas reaching 1,800 meters ( 5,900 feet ) thick . This lake was situated on top of theAmery Ice Shelf , at a place where the ice is more like 1,400 meters ( 4,590 feet ) dense . It is not uncommon to see lakes drained through hydrofracture , and indeed scientists have identified many ice shelves within Antarctica that may be vulnerable to it , but it is not have a bun in the oven to happen in such high Methedrine depth .
Now , the researchers desire to use this information , along with state - of - the - art satellites that were capable to entrance the lake ’s grizzly demise ( aptly named ICESat-2 ) , to further their sympathy of the debasement of ice shelves in Antarctica .
“ It is exciting to see ICESat-2 show us details of processes that are take place on the ice sheet at such fine spatial scale , ” said carbon monoxide - source Helen Amanda Fricker , a glaciologist at Scripps Institution of Oceanography , said in a argument .
“ Since surface meltwater on ice shelves can cause their collapse which ultimately leads to sea - level rise when grounded ice rink is no longer support back , it ’s important to understand the processes that weaken meth shelves . ”
While the edges of Antarctica – along with the rest of the humans – are currently experiencing unprecedented heat , the research worker ca n’t conclude that clime change is creditworthy at this fourth dimension . It would certainly make sensation , as even the most inhospitable places on Earth are feel the heat , with the Arctic Circle experiencingtemperatures as gamey as 48 ° Crecently .
