According to the latest data published by the Copernicus satellite monitoring system of the European Union (EU), last February was the third hottest February recorded in history. The global daily sea ice area, which expresses the sum of sea ice areas in both poles, has reached a low level at the beginning of February.
As a result of global warming, records are recorded in glacier melting, as a result of this, the rise at sea level is tried to be measured correctly by many institutions. Among these institutions are the unit of the American National Aeronautics and Space Office (NASA) space robots, the Jet Ruling Laboratory (JPL/Jet Propulsion Laboratory).
According to the JPL office data, until the end of the century, the collapse of Antarctica ice shelf can deeply affect the lives of hundreds of millions of people around the world, leading to a rise of 1 meter or more.
The lack of detailed data required for the answer to the question of what the fate of the ice sheet will be in a heated climate continues to be the main obstacle to correcting the rise of the sea level.
The necessary data is hidden under the ice sheet
In order to make correct measurements, it is necessary to access the gaps under the Antarctica ice sheet and work in these regions. Scientists at JPL developed a underwater robot called ICenode to perform this challenging task.
NASA JPL Robotic Mechanical Engineer and ICenode project chief researcher. Paul Glick and JPL Climate Scientist and ICenode Project Science Leader Dr. Ian Fenty answered questions from the AA correspondent about the details of the robot and the project.
Glick said that Icenode is a robot designed to collect data under the ice mountains floating in Antarctica, “Understanding what is under the big ice mountains is one of the keys to predicting the rise of the future sea level. he said.
For this reason, Glick said that they adapt a similar mechanism they use in space assignments to the needs in this field and that it is an effective prototype as a result of a three -year study.
Glick shares the information that the ICENODE robot is 2 meters tall and weighs 100 kilograms, “We also have 3 branches that we use to go under the ice on the robot. We are currently trying to measure the melting speed of the ice. he said.
Glick said that they carried out their first work in the Arctic region due to being a research group in the region, and on the other hand, the region they want to focus is Antarctica due to the higher the potential to raise the sea level of the glaciers in Antarctica.
“He has to finish his / her work without any human intervention”
Glick talked about the location of machine education in the project, “Icenode project contains exactly artificial intelligence, but it can be said that it is definitely designed in an autonomous way. The factors such as Icenode’s road under the ice sheet, the thickness of the ice and the limited electrical budget come together. it has to. ” made his words.
Stating that the most important problems are the energy they need in order to collect continuously, Glick said that the project contributes to the work carried out on the climate crisis:
“ICenode is an observation tool designed to collect data about the behavior and mechanics of ice sheets.
Glick, the project has not yet been completed, they could not get certain data, they hope to get positive results in the next few years, he said.
“It can be used directly in global climate models”
The rise of the sea level is a problem that directly affects the lives of millions of people. Ian Fenty said that it is not known what will happen in Antarctica in 100 years and that this situation caused great uncertainty.
Underlining that the project they carry out is quite difficult, Fenty said, “It is not easier to build an autonomous robot under the Antarctica ice shelf than to build a robot that can cross the rocky land of Mars.” He said.
Fenty shared the following predictions about how to use the data to be obtained through the project:
“The data from the Icenode project can be used directly in climate models, especially in global climatic models that estimate how the planet will change in the next 100 years. Nowadays, these models make some explanations about how the ocean interacts with Antarctica, but these explanations are very uncertainty.
Stating that serious studies have been carried out by various institutions in the world for the last 30 years to understand the glacier melting in Antarctica, Fenty, which has opened holes up to 600 meters to various parts of the continent, pointed out that despite the effort made, the data obtained is insufficient.
Fenty added that Icenode has the capacity to fulfill these tasks at lower costs.
