Scientists break ice in Greenland

Scientists had a major breakthrough on the icy island of Greenland recently, when they hit bedrock after a five-year drilling process intended to help predict how the globe’s Arctic ice and sea levels responded to higher temperatures in the past, according to the Environmental News Network.

In late July, the North Greenland Eemian Ice Drilling (NEEM) team hit rock after drilling 1.58 miles into the ice, creating an astoundingly large ice core that can be analyzed through DNA and pollen analysis (and other technological tactics) to tell scientists how Arctic ice and sea levels responded to higher temperatures during the Eemian interglacial period (115,000-130,000 years ago), when the Earth’s temperatures were two to three degrees Fahrenheit warmer than today.

The NEEM team is composed of more than 300 ice-core scientists from 14 nations.