9,000 litres of diesel sinks in Antarctica after ice sheet with 7 containers drifts and breaks apart

A tank with 9,000 litres of winter diesel is believed to have sunk into the sea in Antarctica. The German-operated Neumayer Station III lost several tankers containing supplies, special gear, gas cylinders and batteries after the huge slab of ice they were sitting on drifted away following a violent storm in January. Seven containers resting on the ice sheet were waiting to be loaded onto a ship, with one other container serving as accommodation for crew members exploring the Antarctic region. But a blizzard slammed the station earlier this year. When it ended, the German team noticed that the containers were missing. The research icebreaker Polarstern found that the ice sheet had drifted 140 kilometres from its original location. A recovery operation was launched to recover the fuel and batteries using a helicopter.

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However, the ice sheet was unstable and stalled the operation. That was the end of it, as it failed to show up in satellite images a month later, leading the German researchers to conclude that it had likely broken apart. All the containers are sitting on the seabed, including the one with 9,000 litres of diesel. This has triggered fears of an environmental disaster in the region. The Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting said earlier this month that the container is "assumed to have been either damaged by falling into the sea or exploded on its way to the seabed." It added, "In either case, the fuel is likely to have leaked out." The incident has led to new measures being put in place to ensure containers are not lost in this manner in the future. They are required to be kept at least 5 kilometres from the edge, with the ice sheet closely monitored.

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Antarctica ice sheet is at risk of rapid melting, which could raise sea levels by 190ft

The ice shelves in Antarctica are rapidly melting, scientists have warned, leading to fears that global sea levels could rise by several feet. These ice shelves are floating extensions of the continental ice sheet and not attached to the bedrock. They play a critical role in stabilising the global climate by slowing down the flow of inland glaciers into the ocean. Deep channel–like grooves are trapping warm ocean water under the ice, melting it 10 times faster than normal. This has threatened the structural integrity of the shelves, and their collapse could cause gigatonnes of ice to release into the ocean. Scientists have estimated that if this happens, sea levels could rise by a staggering 190ft.