Russians drill into buried 20 million-year-old Antarctic lake
Russian scientists have drilled through to a 20-million-year-old lake under Antarctica, which, depending on who you listen to, could harbour alien life forms, prehistoric microbes or Hitler's secret hideout. An artist's cross-section of Lake Vostok An artist's cross-section of Lake Vostok. Credit: US National Science Foundation …
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Radioactive mutant prehistoric monsters?
This sounds like exactly what we will need to combat the 50ft Mayans storming across our fair planet later this year.
Solved!
It was a pair of Brid's unnerpants - 20 million year old an still in the wash.
Thank goodness mankind will be saved from the worse by dutiful use of irradiating stuff.
"Have with finished with the national stereotyping yet?"
__________
"And of course the French will be very insulted by all of this, but do nothing about it. Except stare prissily through the smoke of their Galoise."
Any new species will be on French dinnner plates by the next morning.
Tech details missing
I am mystified why no one has questioned the lack of important technical details about this effort. For instance, just how big is this bore hole? It took them twenty years (OK, a few years of waiting for international approval) and now they are talking about exploring with a submersible. I sincerely doubt the hole is that big. It could take decades to drill a bigger hole, if anyone really thinks a submersible could be operated reliably while exposed to such extremely high pressures of oxygen.
In many ways, this almost sounds like a "let's just say we did it and go home for the winter" story.
Ceiling Cat's bath
Yes, it could be Ceiling Cat's bathing area.
Though the thought of what Mulder and Scully investigated in the episode "Ice", is pretty scary.
Then again, it could reveal an organisim that can take over and imitate a host body, and imitate it perfectly. So long as we have Kurt Russell on hand we should be ok.
Or maybe they find a bunch of shiteating space-weevils, that Morgan Freeman will blow to kingdom-come.
Or perhaps they discover a delicious mysterious goo that they market as yummy dessert, but which turns eveyone into mindless zombies. But at least it's low calorie and tasty.
It could even releave an ancient pyramid, build by man, infected with Aliens and played on by Predators. So long as we have Lance Henriksen on hand we should be ok.
£100 says there's nothing there
Under that much ice it'll be in total darkness and colder than a cold thing. Not really what you want for life.
But how are they going to explore it, send a probe down the hole?
So many (dumb) questions. So little time!
Why isn't the water in the lake frozen? Maybe it's a sea of vodka. And kerosene.
Where's the IT angle? Maybe these high octane fish are using the iPhone 5 already???
Typical man
We're looking for life down there -- unique lifeforms -- which we'll blast with radiation, kerosene etc just to make sure it's no longer alive...
That's typical of man -- like landing (and killing) the world's largest octopus etc etc -- WTF! Just keep it the F*** alive!!
weren't the BBC there first?
I remember this lake on Blue Planet, they used a bullet camera which melted the ice, displaced water and moved slowly enough that the water refroze to keep the eco system seperated.
so,
where did that data go?
why drill with kerosene if we know how to do it in a controlled fashion?
More National Stereotyping
My first thought on reading this was that our American neighhbours would be sure that the Ruskies are drilling for, and will find, oil. What else could this be about?
Berkeley Breathed has already beaten me to the punchline, but I think it's time to bring liberty to Antarctica.
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