According to the science website Gizmodo on August 2nd, the research team used an autonomous submersible to conduct a 27-day survey along the glacier.
Oceanographer Anna Wahlin, the study's author, said that using submersibles allowed for high-resolution observation of the ice shelf's underside, compared to previous methods relying on satellite data and ice cores to observe changes in the ice shelf. This enabled the scientific team to create a more detailed map of the Antarctic ice shelf.
A strange, teardrop-shaped structure on the underside of the Antarctic ice shelf.
GIZMODO SCREENSHOT
In addition to previously known ice structures, images from the submersible also revealed patterns with mysterious, inexplicable teardrop-shaped depressions, which the research team believes were created by water currents. The submersible discovered these strange structures in 2022, but the research was only published on July 31 in the journal Science Advances .
Scientists emphasize that understanding these patterns is crucial for more accurately predicting the process of ice melting in Antarctica.
“The maps created by Ran (the submersible) represent a tremendous advance in our understanding of the Antarctic ice shelves. We had notes on the complexity, but Ran has produced a more comprehensive and complete picture than ever before,” said Karen Alley, co-author of the study.
When it returned to operation in January, the Ran submersible disappeared after a survey beneath the ice shelf, and the research team will replace it with another vessel.
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/phat-hien-hoa-van-bi-an-tai-them-bang-nam-cuc-185240803160042951.htm
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