Lake Vostok Antarctica: breakthrough imminent.

Lake Vostok Antarctica: breakthrough imminent.

www.washingtonpost.com

After drilling for two decades through more than two miles of antarctic ice, Russian scientists are on the verge of entering a vast, dark lake that hasn’t been touched by light for more than 20 million years.
Scientists are enormously excited about what life-forms might be found there but are equally worried about contaminating the lake with drilling fluids and bacteria, and the potentially explosive “de-gassing” of a body of water that has especially high concentrations of oxygen and nitrogen.

(visit the link for the full news article)


Related News Links:
www.aari.aq
www.scoop.co.nz

We will see an epic scientific event within the next week.
Only 40 feet from the expected waterline of Vostok Lake.
They have about 2 weeks to breach or it won't happen until next December.

An interesting news:

"Antarctica: Joint Inspection US and Russian Federation".

Tuesday, 24 January 2012, 9:31 am
Press Release: US State Department

Media Note

Office of the Spokesperson

Washington, DC

January 21, 2012

The United States and the Russian Federation will send a joint team to inspect foreign stations, installations and equipment in Antarctica from January 23 to January 28, 2012. The inspection will be conducted pursuant to the Antarctic Treaty of 1959 and its Environmental Protocol. The State Department and the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs will co-lead the inspection, which is the first joint inspection conducted by either country.

Just in time (my comment), and the official page is just removed www.state.gov...

And a very scary comment:

Valery Lukin , who is leading the effort for the Russians, is on the ice. Last year, he told Reuters that their work is “like exploring an alien planet where no one has been before. We don’t know what we’ll find.”

The discovery of Lake Vostok is a hope or a threat? Is Lake Vostok the Pandora's box?

www.washingtonpost.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

Other related threads:
The Lake Vostok Conspiracy
Antarctica 2012

Wow I thought they were supposed to wait... Considering punching threw is risking leaking tons and tons of chemicals into an untouched lake...

They agreed to warm water drilling instead but clearly they didn't want to wait any longer...
Russians....



Aside from that. Any forms of life they find down their in my opinion would confirm the extreme likeliness of life on Mars. Similar climates.

reply to post by Arken


Not really sure what to feel about this. It's . . interesting. But, here's the part that I'm a little leary of, the scientist are worried about contaminating the lake from the drill bit, but I'd be more concerned with the possibility of releasing something into the air that could have an effect on man. Hasn't seen light in 20 million years? Who really knows what they may release into the air? Probably nothing, but still it should be a consideration, shouldn't it?

reply to post by truthinfact


To be fair, they weren't far off drilling through 2 years ago. I would therefore suggest they have waited the appropriate period already.

Personally, i am pleased - it will be very interesting to see the results if they do manage to breakthrough in time.

reply to post by Chance321


Your fear is absolutely correct.

Per the article, a geyser would affect the climate of Antarctica in unpredicted ways.
The real 2012 threat?
[cue threatening orchestral music]

Thanks for the article. I'm not sure how I feel about this it is exciting and scarey at the same time! I really hope there is nothing too bad down there and nothing goes wrong!

I hope they find some kind of life form down there!

reply to post by pierregustavetoutant


Especially since they think that it could be linked to many other subglacial lakes and are very aware of the possiblity of a massive pressure release on breaking through.

They suspect that because of the potential ecosysytem will have evolved under emense pressure that releasing this pressure could make any living organisms unstable.

I have also heard that there was an anomoly found at one end of the lake and that The NSA has classified and taken control of the western operations on site.

I find this whole situation of real importance and hope that all findings are made public(although i doubt it unless they find little or nothing).

Great thread here guys keep the info coming.

Many thanks..... S+F to you

Originally posted by Chance321
reply to post by Arken

 

Not really sure what to feel about this. It's . . interesting. But, here's the part that I'm a little leary of, the scientist are worried about contaminating the lake from the drill bit, but I'd be more concerned with the possibility of releasing something into the air that could have an effect on man. Hasn't seen light in 20 million years? Who really knows what they may release into the air? Probably nothing, but still it should be a consideration, shouldn't it?

Anything that lived that long ago would likely die from being exposed to our atmosphere. When it comes to bacterial life it doesn't take much of a change in chemical composition to kill microbes.

If anything theyre probably being spurred on by the prospects of something else lying under that ice. Antarctica wasn't always covered with ice. There's land under that ice and where there's land there could be structures.

Why can't we Humans just leave anything alone? I understand the importance of Science and all but seriously , why do we have to stick our noses in everything?

I hope it's worth it....I think it's a shame , 20 million years of being un-touched....

reply to post by Arken


Lake Vostok progress has been on the conscious for some time since they stopped drilling last time. To prevent contamination why don't they use laser drill tech. 2 laser outputs that spiral into the ice surface leaving no waste potential behind. The de gassing I think is also a important step to consider as well with the age of the gasses 1 wonders how they would effect modern gas or atmosphere if at all mixed? I feel there may be large bacteria like slug something like the blob material that would swim or float thru the lake inner most regions feeding off of potential Anaerobic microbs of some kind. So hope the Russians are safe going in and considering ALL levels of protection with the resperators if they take dive and hope the probe allows for some interesting images. [color=cyan]
Also would or could there be ancient methan ice sheets present that may be heated if lake interfered with?

Interesting related magnetic anomaly activities?

Early research into Lake Vostok indicated that the body of water had a depth of 2,000 feet�far deeper than any of the Great Lakes and half as deep as Asia�s Lake Baikal (5,000 feet)�a length of 300 miles and a width of 50 miles.

Contrary to what was initially believed, the lake received filtered light. Further investigations also detected the existence of geothermal sources which warmed the lake to an astonishing 50 degrees Fahrenheit, with �hot spots� of up to 65 degrees.

Given these new discoveries regarding solar radiation and temperature, scientists suggested the possibility that the lake�s encapsulated atmosphere purified itself through a complex interaction with water, and that the chances for vegetable life forms were very good.

Research conducted by Russian scientist Ian Toskovoi�who vanished near the Vostok station in March 2000�on �geothermal upboiling� also hinted at an alternative means of purification and replenishment for the subterranean lake�s atmosphere. Toskovoi�s geothermal upboils were located in the so-called �ice dunes,� which appear to be formed by thousands of bubbles of air measuring between several feet to several hundred feet.


However, the most intriguing news coming out of Antarctica had to do with the extremely powerful �magnetic anomaly� located in the northern end of the lake�s coast: a discovery which would give rise to a number of conjectures and would be compared with the fictional TMA-1 (Tycho Magnetic Anomaly-1) in the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey.

www.s8int.com...

Thanks for the update Arken

reply to post by Ophiuchus 13


Rather than gases per say, i believe the fear is about certain possible bacteria that may be present in those gases. Whatever the make up of the gases, the amounts under the ice will be nowhere near enough to have a global impact as they would be absorbed by the far more abundant gases present today. However, if there is a certain strain of airborne bacterium under there, we may be in trouble.

Still, they have to look. It is what we humans do - we would never have got to space without that attitude.

Originally posted by Flavian
reply to post by Ophiuchus 13

 

Still, they have to look. It is what we humans do - we would never have got to space without that attitude.

I can understand the curiosity involved with species progression in fields of exploration but they couldn't do a small tap into it and check for the microbes before hand. And I considered the gases could be absorbed into the existing atmosphere but keep in mind the years on those gases being cycled over and over may have became more concentrated then the entire earth atmosphere and IF mixed could possible cause a chain reaction upon present gases sort of like how methane can be flammable these particular gases may cause a chemical unseen visual change in the Earth entire atmosphere that may causes various types of changes to the co2 cycled here by trees ect. I just cannot understand why no small taps aren't performed in various areas around the lake just to check before the more large access is made. The spores or air born microbes should be detectable with a small tap into lake... The timing tho can we not just wait til atleast 2013 summer 1 will remain optimistic and hopeful they the Earth scientist can be trusted with this. The movie the THING also comes to mind?????

reply to post by Ophiuchus 13

The movie the THING also comes to mind?????

And the H.P. Lovecraft nightmares too.
Stars for you.

reply to post by Arken


I'm more worried about any giant butterflies or mosquitos surviving! Could you imagine a 4 foot mossie flying after you?

Ah, now eventually you do plan to have dinosaurs on your, on your dinosaur tour, right?...Hello?


And they had better not be those rubbery looking ones like in The Land That Time Forgot!

When I heard about Vostok I immediately thought of that old movie...Of course that wont be what happens but would still be so cool!

That or I would take the Savage Land as another option!

reply to post by Arken


I have always been fascinated about this challenge. I remember reading that a special ice melting
device had been designed that would allow the path to refreeze behind it in order to prevent
contamination. The researchers were within meters of the lake before halting futher penetration last
year or so? I imagine this project is being watched very closely.

Speaking of projects, it is about time that the Stardust Aerogel data is fully disclosed as well.
Considering it was taxpayer funded. No intention to derail. But I thought you might find this relative.

Link: www.nasa.gov...

S&F

Heres a link with some interesting views on possible reasons for the magnetic anomaly.

Whats is happening at the south pole

reply to post by Zecharia


Interesting but that was from 11yrs ago. Certainly some fallout would have surfaced if their theories held water.