Scientists unveil world's oldest ice block

[TechBear_Seattle]

Scientists unveil world's oldest ice block

TOKYO (Reuters) - A million-year-old ice sample drilled from 3 kilometres under the Antarctic and unveiled in Tokyo on Tuesday could yield vital clues on climate change, Japanese scientists said.

Researchers, showing off the cylindrical samples of what they said was the oldest ice ever to be retrieved, said studying air trapped inside "core" samples taken from various depths under ground could also help predict how the Earth's weather patterns will change in the future.

"The ice core is made up of snow that fell in the distant past," said project leader Hideaki Motoyama of the National Institute of Polar Research, dressed snugly in a parka after unveiling the gleaming ice in a room kept at minus 20 degrees Celsius (minus 4 Fahrenheit).

"You can use it to examine changes in temperature, levels of carbon dioxide and methane over time, information that is only available from the core," he said.

The article continues at http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060418/sc_nm/environment_ice_dc

[whalerider55]

1. it would have saved a lot of money....

if they'd just waited for it to melt down so they could've used a hand drill to get the core sample.

whalerider

[monktonman]

2. They've finally made it...

to the core of Barbara Bush's heart

[TechBear_Seattle]

3. Not quite

According to the article, the scientists expect they have another 20 feet of ice to go before they hit the primordial stone.

[monktonman]

7. Well they always said she had a big heart

[Atman]

4. Oh, I thought this was a thread about Barbara Bush

Never mind.

:evilgrin:

[Taxloss]

5. Now all we need is the world's oldest tumbler of whisky. n/t

[htuttle]

10. I don't think you can find any whiskey older than 1780

If it's not Jameson's, it's just not whiskey...:)

[OhioNerd]

11. Dammit. Beat me to it. n/t

[DainBramaged]

6. Slushies for everyone.

[joefree1]

8. I hope they keep the ice on ice

So our Grandchildren can see what the Artic ice looked like after it's all gone.

[RaleighNCDUer]

9. You beat me to it.

"And here, kiddies, in this freezer case we have a core drilling of 5 million year old ice."

"Where do you get ice that old?"

"Well, there might be some on Mars, but there isn't any more on earth. We melted it all during the Oil Wars."