Antarctica

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Lost Emperor Penguin Learns Sand Is Not Snow

Male nicknamed Gus is first of his species to reach Australia, 2.2K miles from home

(Newser) - A seabird rehabilitator in Australia is on a learning curve, caring for her first ever emperor penguin—the first of his species known to have made the 2,200-mile swim from Antarctica. The male emperor penguin, nicknamed Gus after the Roman emperor Augustus, turned up on Ocean Beach near Australia'...

Crew's Final Movements Frozen in Time on Endurance

3D scan reveals remarkable detail of the wreck, including scattered dishes and a lost boot

(Newser) - As Antarctic explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton's flagship, Endurance, was lost to ice in 1915, the expedition's photographer grabbed a flare gun and fired it as a tribute to the ship which served as the crew's home. In his diary, Frank Hurley recalled that he then set the...

In Antarctica, the 'Greening' Spread Has Been Dramatic

Vegetation on Antarctic Peninsula has increased more than tenfold in recent decades

(Newser) - Antarctica, the coldest place on Earth, remains awash in dull gray and white, but with a growing section of green that scientists say could "forever" alter the iconic landscape. Visible from space, the "greening" of the Antarctic Peninsula has spread dramatically since the mid-1980s, according to a study...

World's Largest Iceberg No Longer Headed to 'Oblivion'

At least not yet: A23a, trapped in a water vortex, is expected to survive for years more

(Newser) - To be an iceberg is to be on the verge of death. Once broken off a glacier or ice shelf, icebergs typically melt within a few years. But the world's largest iceberg, which appeared to be on a slow death march late last year, is now expected to survive...

It Was Another Tough Year for Emperor Penguin Chicks
It Was Another Tough Year
for Emperor Penguin Chicks
NEW STUDY
Apr 26, 2024 10:55 AM CDT

It Was Another Tough Year for Emperor Penguin Chicks

20% of colonies experienced breeding failures tied to record low sea ice: study

(Newser) - Low sea ice is wreaking havoc on emperor penguins year after year, likely resulting in the total wipeout of chicks in some colonies. Nearly a third of emperor penguin colonies experienced early sea-ice loss in 2022, resulting in catastrophic breeding failures. Though marked by an even lower sea ice extent...

'Hundreds' of Dead Seals Block Antarctic Explorer's Grave

Virus has taken a heavy toll on South Georgia's wildlife

(Newser) - Passengers who'd hoped to walk with penguins on a cruise around the Antarctic Peninsula and the island of South Georgia weren't allowed to go ashore, but they witnessed distressing scenes of animals that had been killed by a bird flu outbreak in the region. Passenger Astrid Saunders tells...

Isolated Staffers in Antarctica Show How New Accents Begin

During months of isolation, staffers at British Antarctic Survey began talking differently

(Newser) - Together through extreme isolation for months on end, wintering researchers in Antarctica develop close relationships—and, as one study found, a new way of talking, too. The BBC reports that over six months, staff members at British Antarctic Survey's (BAS) Rothera Research Station slowly began to pronounce certain words...

Nasty Bird Flu Hits Antarctic Mammals
An Unwanted First
in Nasty Bird Flu
Jan 30, 2024 1:19 PM CST

An Unwanted First in Nasty Bird Flu

It's been found in sub-Antarctic animals for the first time

(Newser) - An unfortunate milestone has been logged in the continuing spread of a lethal form of bird flu, which has wreaked havoc from continent to continent since it first appeared in 2020. For the first time, the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) strain of H5N1 has been confirmed in sub-Antarctic mammals,...

Poop Seen From Space Leads to Emperor Penguin Discovery

4 colonies are newly identified

(Newser) - Scientists have spotted previously unknown colonies of emperor penguins in Antarctica, all thanks to poop that could be seen from space. As NBC News reports, Peter Fretwell with the British Antarctic Survey used satellite imagery to spot "tell-tale patches" of penguin guano against the white snow. It's encouraging...

World's Biggest Iceberg Is on Its Death March

After breaking free of Antarctica, A23a receives visitors en route to the 'iceberg graveyard'

(Newser) - Scientists just got an up-close look at the world's largest iceberg , now on a slow march to its death. The iceberg that hosted a Soviet research station before breaking off Antarctica's Filchner Ice Shelf in 1986 and becoming lodged on the floor of the Weddell Sea lost its...

World's Largest Iceberg Is Finally on the Move

A23a was stuck on seafloor near Antarctica for decades

(Newser) - An iceberg bigger than some small countries has broken loose from the floor of Antarctica's Weddell Sea and is on the move for the first time in nearly 40 years. At almost 1,500 square miles in area—twice as big as New York City and Los Angeles combined—...

Jury Rules on Antarctic Assault Claims: 'This Vindicates Him'

Stephen Tyler Bieneman was accused of putting shin across throat of woman at research station

(Newser) - A federal jury on Wednesday found a man not guilty of assaulting a woman at a US research station in Antarctica in a case that drew attention amid reports of harassment and assault at the station. Stephen Tyler Bieneman pulled tissues from a box on the defense table and cried...

Key Part of Antarctica Faces 'Unavoidable' Melt
Antarctica Ice Study
Delivers 'Not Great News'
NEW STUDY
Oct 23, 2023 2:57 PM CDT

Antarctica Ice Study Delivers 'Not Great News'

Melting of key part of Antarctica is now unavoidable, researchers say

(Newser) - No matter how much the world cuts back on carbon emissions, a key and sizable chunk of Antarctica is essentially doomed to an "unavoidable" melt, according to a new study. Though the full melt will take hundreds of years, slowly adding nearly 6 feet to sea levels, it will be...

Bars to Stop Serving Alcohol at Main US Antarctic Base

Move follows reports of sexual misconduct at McMurdo Station

(Newser) - From Sunday, workers at the main United States base in Antarctica will no longer be able to walk into a bar and order a beer, after the federal agency that oversees the research program decided to stop serving alcohol. McMurdo Station will not be going entirely dry, the National Science...

It Was a Daunting Antarctic Rescue—but a Successful One

An Australian icebreaker made it to within 89 miles of the ill man

(Newser) - An Australian who fell ill at a remote Antarctic base is returning home on an icebreaker following a daunting mission to rescue him, authorities said Tuesday. The man was working at the Casey research station when he suffered from what authorities described as a developing medical condition that needed specialist...

Women Say Culture Is Toxic at Antarctica Post

AP conducts a lengthy investigation of sexual harassment, assault at a very remote outpost

(Newser) - The howling winds and perpetual darkness of the Antarctic winter were easing when mechanic Liz Monahon at McMurdo Station grabbed a hammer. If those in charge weren't going to protect her from the man she feared would kill her, she figured she needed to protect herself. So she kept...

Please Stop Traveling to Antarctica
Please Stop Traveling
to Antarctica
opinion
Jul 11, 2023 4:24 PM CDT

Please Stop Traveling to Antarctica

Sara Clemence makes her case in the 'Atlantic'

(Newser) - In the first part of her essay on Antarctica, Sara Clemence recounts its "otherworldly" beauty. But that's merely a prelude to a plea she then issues: Everybody should stop traveling there before the increasingly fragile continent is wrecked irreparably. In the Atlantic piece, she notes that Antarctica drew...

China Is Once Again Busy in the Antarctic

Beijing is building a fifth facility, which is raising surveillance fears

(Newser) - China is back to building in Antarctica. Satellite images from January show new support facilities, temporary buildings, a helicopter pad, and foundations for a main building at the site of the country's fifth Antarctic research station on Inexpressible Island near the Ross Sea. China began building there in 2018...

This Week Brings 3 Grim Climate Headlines

Sea ice in Antarctica has hit a record low

(Newser) - While it's rare for a week to go by without bleak news on the climate, this week has been more alarming than most. Three major stories, all linked to melting ice and rising seas:
  • Antarctic sea ice hits record low. Sea ice around Antarctica has hit its lowest level
...

'Ice Mermaid' Marks World First With Antarctic Swim

Barbara Hernandez swam nearly 1.6 miles in 35-degree water—longest swim yet in Southern Ocean

(Newser) - The longest swim in the frigid Antarctic Ocean, aka the Southern Ocean, has been achieved, by a world-champion extreme swimmer from Chile known as the "Ice Mermaid." On Monday, Barbara Hernandez, 37, covered 2.5 kilometers (just under 1.6 miles) in Chile Bay, off of the Antarctic...

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