Study suggests large methane reservoirs beneath Antarctic ice sheet
Description:
The Antarctic Ice Sheet could be an overlooked but important source of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, according to a new study. The research demonstrates that old organic matter in sedimentary basins located beneath the Antarctic Ice Sheet may have been converted to methane by micro-organisms living under oxygen-deprived conditions. The methane could be released to the atmosphere if the ice sheet shrinks and exposes these old sedimentary basins. [Source: University of California, Santa Cruz]