Until recently, the existence of the ecosystem was hidden by glaciers.
A team of scientists from New Zealand found that swarms of small shrimp-like sea creatures live in a domed cave under the Antarctic shelf glacier. They live in a developed ecosystem that was recently hidden by glaciers, according to The Guardian.
The ecosystem was discovered at a depth of 500 meters under the glacier hundreds of kilometers from the Ross Glacier shelf.
Read also: Scientists have announced changes in clouds over Antarctica that could affect the Earth's climate
As a result of the study, scientists sought to understand how the mouth of the subglacial river affects the melting of shelf glaciers caused by climate change. But when they drilled the ice and reached the river, their camera snatched many amphipods, small creatures of the same origin as lobsters, crabs and mites.
“For a while we thought there was something wrong with the camera, but when the focus improved, we noticed a swarm of arthropods about 5 millimeters in size, “said Craig Stevens of the National Water and Atmosphere Institute of New Zealand (Niwa).
According to scientists, although the main purpose of the expedition was to study the effects of climate change, it also had an element of discovery. “We jumped for joy because all these animals floating around our equipment mean that there is an important ecosystem there,” said Stevens. Antarctica, but they have not yet been studied directly. A team of researchers has left tools in the subglacial river to monitor how it changes over time, and samples from the lab will show what makes the river unique.
The group began research a few days before the powerful eruption of the volcano Hung Tonga-Hung Haapai. The team's instruments recorded a significant change in pressure as the tsunami broke through the cavity.
Stevens notes that this reminded scientists of how interconnected everything on our planet is.
Previously Scientists have discovered a giant circulating groundwater system deep beneath the ice of West Antarctica. Such systems can tell how the ice continent reacts to or even participates in climate change.
