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NIU Researchers Going to Antarctica
Researchers at Northern Illinois University will be examining a key location in Antarctica using a robotic submarine.

The expedition is set for 2012. To be observed is the point where the ocean, the West Antarctic Ice Sheet and the protruding ice shelf come together. Researchers want to look at melting at the base of the ice shelf -- the point where the ice begins to extend from the land-based ice sheet and float on the ocean -- in order to be able to project future rises in sea levels due to global warming. They also want to see what lives down there.

They'll use a robotic submarine that's 24 feet long, but which will be collapsed to two feet wide to fit through a three-foot wide hole to be melted through 3,000 feet of ice to reach the ocean floor. The submarine will send back high definition video, still photographs and scientific readings via a fiber optic cable. It also will have feelers for gathering samples from the ocean floor.

The unit, being manufactured by DOER Marine in Alameda, Calif., will cost about $2 million.

Northern Illinois has been involved in Antarctic research for almost 50 years.

The expedition is expected to last eight to 10 weeks, and will take place during the winter, when it is summer in Antarctica. Geology professor Reed Scherer says summer in Antarctica is like winter in DeKalb, except it's light all day.

(Illinois Radio Network)
11 30 09 by Newsroom
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