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Article: They're M-e-e-elting! An Investigation of Glacial Retreat in Antarctica.
- Article from:
- Science Scope
- Article date:
- January 1, 2007
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2007 National Science Teachers Association. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: Samuel R. Bugg IV, Juanita Constible, Marianne Kaput, and Richard E. Lee, Jr.
Photo courtesy of the authors
Our laboratory studies cryobiology, or life at low temperatures. One of our research subjects, a wingless fly called Belgica antarctica, is found on islands near Palmer Station, a U.S. research base on the Antarctic Peninsula. An ancient glacier that historically has dwarfed the station buildings huddled on the coastline is wasting away. This glacier, which is 130 meters tall, has receded by approximately 300 meters since 1981! Why has this melting occurred? What happens when that much freshwater enters the ocean? Will this melting ...