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For over a century, scientists have studied Antarctica, yet the appearance of the land beneath its ice remained mostly unknown. Now, a team of researchers from Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands, and the UK have published the most detailed data on the subglacial topography near the South Pole, according to reports from Earther.
Published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters [PDF], the study reveals that central Antarctica is home to three enormous canyons, one of which is deeper than the Grand Canyon and almost as wide in certain areas. The discovery came after researchers used radar-equipped planes to fly over the South Pole, a region not captured by satellite imaging. While they anticipated finding mountains beneath the ice, the massive chasms between them were an unexpected find.
Two of the three canyons were previously unknown. The largest of them, the Foundation Trough, stretches 218 miles, is up to 22 miles wide, and reaches a depth of 6,260 feet, ranking it among the world's most extraordinary canyons.
While the discoveries themselves are noteworthy, the primary goal of this research is to gain a deeper understanding of how the West and East Antarctic Ice Sheets will respond to rising temperatures. Human-driven climate change has already destabilized parts of the continent's ice, with the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, in particular, steadily breaking apart and melting into the ocean. If these trends persist, the glaciers along the coast supporting these massive ice sheets could collapse, potentially raising sea levels by at least 10 feet. In such a scenario, the newly discovered canyons could play a significant role in influencing the speed and direction of ice flow from central Antarctica to the coast.
While this event isn't expected to occur in the immediate future, continued research into Antarctica's topography will enable scientists to make more accurate predictions about when it may happen.
