A team of international scientists are transporting samples of ice
from a melting glacier in Bolivia to Antarctica, for study and
preservation before the glacier disappears.
The international "Ice
Memory" expedition of 15 scientists took samples from the glacier on
Mount Illimani in the Andes and will store them in Antarctica at the
French-Italian base of Concordia.
The scientists were helped by
local guides and porters, who live near the base of Illimani. Clearly
visible from Bolivia's capital La Paz, Illimani's "eternal snows" are
frequently referenced in the music, mythology and literature of the
Aymara people.
But scientists say global warming is rapidly melting the glaciers of
the Andes, removing an important source of fresh water for many
communities and threatening others with deadly avalanches.
Illimani itself has warmed by 0.7 degree Centigrade in the last 18 years, said Ice Memory glaciologist Patrick Ginot.
The team dug over 130 meters (430 ft) into the glacier to remove 75
ice samples, which they say yield some 18,000 years of climatic history.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/environment/93953920/scientists-rescue-samples-of-melting-bolivian-glacier-before-it-disappears
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