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Researchers have found that bacteria in a lake 800 meters (2,600 feet) beneath the West Antarctic Ice Sheet may digest methane, a powerful greenhouse gas, preventing its release into the atmosphere. The researchers successfully drilled through the ice sheet in 2013 to reach Lake Whillans. The prevalence of methane-consuming bacteria in the upper lake sediment suggests a "methane biofilter" prevents the gas from entering the subglacial water, where it can eventually drain into the ocean and be released into the atmosphere. [Source: National Science Foundation]
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