Antarctic lake mission called off

The principal investigator of the Lake Ellsworth drilling mission, Professor Martin Siegert, has said he and the team are "extremely disappointed" to have called off the mission.

He said that drilling was proceeding slower than expected and that there would not have been enough fuel to continue.

He added: "We must remember that the scientific reasons to do this work remain compelling".

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Professor Martin Siegert said the aborted mission was "hugely frustrating":

This is of course, hugely frustrating for us, but we have learned a lot this year.

Although circumstances have not worked out as we would have wished, I am confident that through the huge efforts of the field team, and our colleagues in the UK, we have done as much as we possibly could have done, and I sincerely thank them all.

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A statement released on behalf of British scientists running the Antarctic mission confirmed drilling was called off in the early hours of Christmas Day:

Drilling was proceeding well during the weekend after a replacement part was fitted to the boiler used to heat water for drilling.

Drilling stopped after the team was unable to form properly the water-filled cavity 300 metres beneath the ice.

This cavity was to link the main borehole with a secondary borehole used to recirculate drilling water back to the surface.

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A team of British scientists has called off its mission to drill deep into an Antarctic ice sheet in the hope of finding life in an ancient lake.

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The team of British scientists who are trying to drill through 3km of Antarctic ice to reach an ancient lake have been delayed by a technical hitch.

Drilling was due to begin at the weekend but one of the boilers used to melt snow failed to start up. New parts have been ordered but drilling is not likely to resume before December 21.

Professor Martin Siegert, principal investigator of the Lake Ellsworth team, explains more:

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A team of British scientists are due to begin drilling into an ancient lake buried under 3 kilometres of Antarctic ice.

This will be the first attempt to extract uncontaminated samples of water and sediment from a body of water so far below the surface.

The team will drill the ice with a special hot-water drill, that will use approximately a thousand litres of water made from melted snow. It will take the team around five days to reach the subglacial lake.

Video thanks to Pete Bucktrout from the British Antarctic Survey.

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