Scientists Retrieve Massive Antarctic Core Sample to Study Climate Change

The 750-foot sediment core provides an unprecedented look at the Earth's climate history.

Published on Feb. 27, 2026

Got story updates? Submit your updates here. ›

An international team of 29 scientists has drilled more than 1,600 feet through the Antarctic ice sheet to retrieve a record-breaking 750-foot sediment core. The core contains layers of mud, sand, fossils, and other debris that provide a detailed history of the Earth's climate over millions of years, from ice ages to warmer greenhouse periods. Researchers hope the analysis of this core will help answer critical questions about how the West Antarctic Ice Sheet will respond to future warming.

Why it matters

Understanding the Earth's climate history is crucial for predicting and preparing for the impacts of climate change. This sediment core from deep beneath the Antarctic ice sheet offers an unprecedented look at how the planet's climate has changed over time, which could guide plans for coastal communities to adapt to rising sea levels.

The details

The team, known as SWAIS2C (Sensitivity of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet to 2 Degrees Celsius of Warming), includes geologists, engineers, physicists, microbiologists, and polar specialists. They spent years planning and executing the complex task of drilling through the thick Antarctic ice to reach the seabed and extract the 750-foot sediment core, which contains a record of the Earth's climate history going back millions of years.

  • The project has been more than 10 years in the making.
  • The team drilled through 1,600 feet of Antarctic ice to reach the seabed.

The players

Tina van de Flierdt

A geologist with Imperial College London and the co-chief scientist for the SWAIS2C project.

Kurt Cuffey

An environmental geophysicist at the University of California, Berkeley who specializes in the physics of glaciers.

Got photos? Submit your photos here. ›

What they’re saying

“It's a project that has been more than 10 years in the making.”

— Tina van de Flierdt, Co-chief scientist, SWAIS2C (cbsnews.com)

“We are the first people ever to see sediment from underneath that ice. Nobody has seen this before.”

— Tina van de Flierdt, Co-chief scientist, SWAIS2C (cbsnews.com)

“It's unprecedented, and I'm really excited about it.”

— Kurt Cuffey, Environmental geophysicist, UC Berkeley (cbsnews.com)

What’s next

The SWAIS2C team believes an analysis of the sediment core may guide plans for how coastal communities and cities can better adapt to sea level rise.

The takeaway

This sediment core from deep beneath the Antarctic ice sheet offers an unprecedented look at the Earth's climate history, which could help scientists better understand how the planet's climate has changed over time and how the West Antarctic Ice Sheet may respond to future warming.