New map of Antarctica reveals hidden world of lakes, valleys and mountains buried beneath miles of ice

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The map shows diverse geological features shaping Antarctic glaciers from below, which can improve climate models of ice melt.

Stonington Island is lying in the eastern part of Marguerite Bay off the west coast of Graham Island, Antarctica.
It's easy to see features like Stonington Island off the west coast of Graham Island, Antarctica, but now a new map shows scientists what lies beneath in unprecedented detail. (Image credit: kitz-travellers/Getty Images)

Scientists have mapped the bedrock beneath Antarctica's massive ice sheet in unprecedented detail, revealing hidden structures that form the glacier.

The ice sheet, which spans more than 5.4 million square miles (14 million square kilometers), shrouds underlying mountains, valleys, lakes and basins, according to a new study published in the journal Science on Thursday (Jan. 15).

Yet much about the landscape under the ice has been uncertain, because ground and air surveys are difficult in the region. Scientists often estimate information between distant or irregular survey points, for example, which can miss valleys in the bedrock that guide ice flow.

In the new study, researchers addressed this gap by combining high-resolution satellite images of the ice sheet surface with ice thickness measurements, and an ice flow analysis based on the physics of how ice flows over bedrock. The scientists integrated these data to create a continent-scale map of Antarctica's topography under the ice.

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The new IFPA topography map reveals new features in the landscape beneath Antarctica, from hills and ridges to details of entire mountain ranges, and fills in gaps between radar survey lines.
(Image credit: Helen Ockenden)

A new map of the hidden features beneath Antarctica's ice shows the icy continent in unprecedented detail.

The extensive map revealed features 1.2 to 18.6 miles (2 to 30 kilometers) beneath the ice sheet that were previously unknown or unclear to science, such as river channels stretching hundreds of miles, which could be traces of the landscape predating the ice sheet.

The map also uncovered sharp transitions between highland and lowland terrain, suggesting tectonic boundaries. In one region where previous air surveys had predicted an ancient river landscape covered by ice, the new map actually identified deep valleys underneath.

The map enables scientists to observe how the ice sheet has evolved and interacted with underlying topography. Visualizing the processes affecting these glaciers can improve models of ice sheets and make projections of climate change-driven ice melt and sea-level rise more exact.

Antarctica quiz: Test your knowledge on Earth's frozen continent

Olivia Ferrari
Olivia Ferrari
Live Science Contributor

Olivia Ferrari is a New York City-based freelance journalist with a background in research and science communication. Olivia has lived and worked in the U.K., Costa Rica, Panama and Colombia. Her writing focuses on wildlife, environmental justice, climate change, and social science.

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