Antarctica’s ice hides 85 active subglacial lakes, scientists reveal

Scientists have recently discovered 85 secret active lakes buried beneath Antarctica’s ice by using the European Space Agency's satellite.

The newly-identified subglacial lakes are active as they occasionally fill, refill, and drain. Consequently, these lakes change the shape and size over time as reported by researchers.

To make matters worse, the presence of these active subglacial lakes poses risks in the form of high global sea levels.

By utilizing European Space Agency’s Cryosat-2 satellite data, the research team has unveiled these lakes located several kilometres beneath the South Pole ice.

After the documentation of these 85 active lakes, the total number in Antarctica has risen to 231.

According to lead author Sally Wilson, “It is incredibly difficult to observe subglacial lake filling and draining events in these conditions, especially since they take several months or years to fill and drain.”

Only 36 complete cycles, from the start of subglacial filling through to the end of draining, had been observed worldwide before our study. We observed 12 more complete fill-drain events, bringing the total to 48,” he added.

As per researchers’ findings, this discovery shows the diversity in the hydrology of Antarctica ice as these lakes will continue to evolve over the future.