North Grip Drill Site, Greenland
Position:
75°0'N 42°18'W, elevation 2925 meters
Datemark:
April 2003
Mission:
Visit and report on completion of 8-year-long effort to sample the oldest ice sampled in the Northern Hemisphere
Under Auspices of:
National Science Foundation; 109th Airlift Wing of New York Air National Guard; WBUR.org
Transport:
Ground transport to Albany; military transport to Kangerlussauq; ski-equipped LC-130 to ice sheet
Results:
Radio documentary; web features; print article
SYPNOPSIS
In 1996, a team of researchers began drilling a hole in the middle the Greenland Ice Sheet, at a spot they called the North Greenland Ice Core Project (North GRIP) site. It was to be the deepest hole ever made in Greenland and, if successful, it would give the researchers access to the oldest northern-hemisphere ice ever seen. They hoped the ice would help predict whether global warming would raise Earth’s temperature gradually or cause a catastrophic climate crisis. In 2004, when they finally hit bottom, I was there.
- Read Dan’s article in the New York Times on ice core drilling at North GRIP
- Visit Land of Ice and Stone Dan’s micro website on climate research in Greenland
- Read More