Antarctic ice cores

Future activities Although our appreciation of Antarctic history has improved dramatically over the past decade, there is still much to learn. Significant questions exist about the evolution of Antarctic landscape, both above and below the ice cover; its connection with ice-sheet development; past and present large-scale ice-sheet dynamics and stability; the role of sub-glacial water in the ice-sheet system; and the influence of ice-sheet evolution on Antarctic biology. In 2004, the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) recognised the importance of understanding past changes in Antarctica with the establishment of its Antarctic Climate Evolution (ACE) scientific research program. This program, in conjunction with other SCAR program’s (SALE – Subglacial Antarctic Lake Environments; AGCS – Antarctica in the Global Climate System; and EBA – Evolution and Biodiversity in Antarctica), aims to further integrate numerical models with geological data, in order to understand the processes responsible for the growth and decay of large ice sheets and to comprehend the global significance of such changes.