Over The Horizon

Project Put On Ice

A six-nation, multi-million dollar Antarctic science project being led by New Zealand has been postponed for a year due to unstable ice conditions.

Antarctica New Zealand Chief Executive Gillian Wratt says the sea ice from which drilling was to take place would not be suitable by October.

The drill rig, which was to core ancient seafloor sediments 500 metres below the ocean surface, required strong, uniform sea ice off Cape Roberts. However, studies of satellite photographs taken since early July revealed a large crack in the sea ice close to the coast. A large slab of ice then broke off and drifted north leaving open water over much of the planned drilling area, 18 kilometres off-shore.

Although it is now refreezing, as Antarctica enters its coldest month, there is not enough time for it to reach the consistency and thickness required for safe conditions.

The Cape Roberts Project, which involves scientific and logistic collaboration between New Zealand, the United States, Italy, Britain, Germany and Australia, is designed to reveal the climatic and geological conditions that existed 30-100 million years ago.