Fighting boredom with banjos and Russian grammar – tips from polar explorers for surviving months of isolation

A strong mind was key to surviving the monotony faced by Antarctic explorers enduring the isolation of long, remote winters.

Daniella McCahey, History Lecturer, University of Idaho • conversation
March 30, 2020 • ~7 min

Vintage film reveals Antarctic glacier melting

Newly available archival film has revealed the eastern ice shelf of Thwaites Glacier in Antarctica is melting faster than previous estimates, suggesting the shelf may collapse sooner than expected.

Cambridge University News • cambridge
Sept. 3, 2019 • ~5 min

Rapid melting of the world’s largest ice shelf linked to solar heat in the ocean

An international team of scientists has found part of the world’s largest ice shelf is melting 10 times faster than the overall ice shelf average due to solar heating of the surrounding ocean surface.

Cambridge University News • cambridge
April 29, 2019 • ~5 min

Surface lakes cause Antarctic ice shelves to ‘flex’

The filling and draining of meltwater lakes has been found to cause a floating Antarctic ice shelf to flex, potentially threatening its stability.

Cambridge University News • cambridge
Feb. 13, 2019 • ~6 min

The search for Endurance

In early January, a team of Cambridge scientists set out on an expedition to study and map the Larsen C ice shelf in western Antarctica, and – ice conditions permitting – search for the wreckage of Sir Ernest Shackleton’s Endurance. 

Cambridge University News • cambridge
Jan. 24, 2019 • ~1 min

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