Detailed Map Reveals Antarctica's Subglacial Landscape

Scientists have unveiled the most detailed map to date of the landscape hidden beneath Antarctica's vast ice sheet, revealing a complex world of mountains, canyons, valleys and thousands of previously unknown hills and ridges. The international team, led by researchers from the University of Edinburgh, published their findings this week in the journal Science, using satellite data and ice flow analysis to peer through up to three miles of ice covering the continent.

The Antarctic ice sheet spans more than 5.4 million square miles and holds about 70 percent of the world's freshwater. Its immense weight has depressed parts of the bedrock below sea level, creating a subglacial terrain that influences how the ice moves toward the ocean. Prior mapping efforts, which relied on radar surveys conducted by snowmobiles or aircraft along limited tracks, left large gaps in coverage. As a result, scientists knew less about this hidden landscape than they did about the surfaces of Mars or Venus.

To overcome these limitations, the researchers employed a technique called Ice Flow Perturbation Analysis, or IFPA. This method examines high-resolution satellite images of the ice surface to detect...