DURHAM — A team of U.S. ice coring scientists and engineers in
Antarctica, funded by the National Science Foundation, have
recovered an unprecedented record of climate and greenhouse
gases in the atmosphere that extends back 68,000 years. The core
is the longest ever drilled by an American team at 11,160 feet
(3,405 meters). The West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) Divide ice
core project, with science coordination by the University of New
Hampshire, provides a record of uniquely detailed information on
past environmental conditions such as the atmospheric
concentration of greenhouse gases, surface air temperature, wind
patterns, the extent of sea ice around Antarctica, and the
average temperature of the ocean. The ice containing the record
was recovered at a field camp in the center of West Antarctica,
650 miles (1,040 kilometers) from the South Pole, where the ice
cover is more than two miles thick (3,460 meters). By examining
past climate at an annual resolution, the record will help
scientists understand why c