Scientists urge multinational mission to study Antarctica's hidden Wilkes Basin

A team of scientists representing 14 countries has issued a joint appeal for a multimillion-dollar, multinational investigation of the Wilkes Subglacial Basin, the last largely unexplored area of Antarctica. The basin, stretching about 1,400 kilometres long and 400 kilometres wide, rests on bedrock more than 2,000 metres below sea level, making it vulnerable to warming ocean waters and capable of contributing up to four metres of sea-level rise.

Researchers say existing climate models cannot reliably forecast when such a loss could occur because of major data gaps beneath the ice. They recommend deploying two icebreakers and conducting a multi-year program that includes drilling through the ice sheet, airborne surveys and satellite monitoring. Australia could coordinate the effort given the basin lies mostly within its claimed Antarctic territory, but they stress that no single nation can shoulder the cost or risk alone, urging partners like New Zealand, South Korea, France and the United States to join.