Hole the Size of Maine Opens in Antarctica Ice
This is the first time scientists have observed a hole of this magnitude since the 1970s.
A mysterious hole as big as the state of Maine has been spotted in Antarctica’s winter sea ice cover.
The hole was discovered by researchers about a month ago. The team, comprised of scientists from the University of Toronto and the Southern Ocean Carbon and Climate Observations and Modeling (SOCCOM) project, was monitoring the area with satellite technology after a similar hole opened last year.
Known as a polynya, this year’s hole was about 30,000 square miles at its largest, making it the biggest polynya observed in Antarctica’s Weddell Sea since the 1970s.
“In the depths of winter, for more than a month, we’ve had this area of open water,” says Kent Moore, professor of physics at the University of Toronto. “It’s just
