In a secret US base, scientists have found in the freezer a forgotten “treasure” from the 1960s that could reveal the ancient secrets of the planet.
According to Sience, the US – Belgium – Denmark research team led by Dr. Andrew J.Christ from the University of Vermont (USA) looked at an ancient ice core that was mined at a depth of 1,390m below the surface of the region. Northwest Greenland.
“Treasures” from Camp Century secret base – (Photo: VERMONT UNIVERSITY).
It was brought back by scientists from Camp Century, a secret US military base that operated in the 1960s.
But this nearly 4m long rock tube was lost from the freezer for decades, then suddenly found again in 2017.
The scientists decided to use modern techniques for detailed analysis and were shocked to find that it contained not only sediment but also leaves and moss , completely overturning the long-held view that it Greenland has been an impregnable ice fortress for 2.5 million years.
Because of the leaves and moss, a verdant forest once existed there. This means that part of Greenland was once completely ice-free.
Traces of the ice-free era extend from the sediment of 416,000 to 400,000 years ago, as revealed by the technique of “luminescence dating” , which helps to locate the exact time period of that sediment. exposure to sunlight.
A green Greenland, full of plants and animals, is bad news for the rest of the world, because not only is it too hot, but it also faces sea levels that are 1.5-6m higher than today, an impressive number. submerged many cities, even parts of countries today.
The dating and manner of the ice-free period also suggests that this could be repeated if the climate changes to a certain extent, which is likely due to the actions of human destruction of the environment. .
Climate scientist Joseph MacGregor from NASA, who was not involved in this study but shares similar concerns, notes that we are now in the danger zone because we have produced higher concentrations of greenhouse gases than ever before. not that tape.
Currently the level of heat-trapping carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is up to 420 ppm, 400,000 years ago it was only 280 ppm.