Overview
- A British Antarctic Survey–KOPRI team hot‑water drilled a roughly 3,300‑foot, one‑foot‑wide borehole that must be kept heated to avoid refreezing within about 48 hours.
- Short‑duration instruments were dipped and retrieved, yielding the first in‑situ measurements from beneath Thwaites’ main trunk that indicate turbulent, relatively warm, fast‑flowing water.
- The long‑term mooring intended to transmit data for one to two years became stuck about three‑quarters of the way down the borehole, likely due to refreezing or ice motion.
- With worsening weather and a February 7 ship departure deadline, the team abandoned the trapped instruments and plans to use the new observations to guide a future attempt.
- Separately, researchers are advancing a proposed seabed‑anchored curtain—about 50 miles long and 152 meters tall—with a three‑year R&D plan, prototype tests in Norwegian fjords, and an early $10 million fundraising target to explore slowing warm currents reaching Thwaites, which contributes roughly 4% of annual sea‑level rise and holds enough ice to raise seas by about 65 centimeters.