Arctic mission to go under the ice
British explorers prepare for north pole mission to determine when arctic sea ice will melt
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Tuesday, 27, Jan 2009 08:44
British explorers are preparing a mission to the north pole to determine when the arctic sea ice will melt.
The manned expedition, dubbed "crucial", will be the first to accurately gauge how long the ice will continue to melt.
Previous missions involving satellites and submarines have put the figure at between five and 100 years.
British explorer Pen Hadow hopes to obtain the "vital scientific data" by using ice-penetrating radar and data uplink systems.
"By using specialised new equipment on the surface of the ice itself, Hadow's team hope to be able to predict more accurately the potentially devastating impact of near total sea ice loss each summer on millions of people worldwide," a statement said.
"Ten million measurements of the undersea water column and the thickness and density of the snow and sea ice layers will be taken, along with samples of water, ice, snow and air.
"The resulting findings will be presented to international decision makers at the United Nations climate change conference of parties at Copenhagen later this year."
The expedition, sponsored by the Catlin Group and with the support of the Prince of Wales, is expected to begin on February 26th, weather permitting.