Ice Core Extraction and Transport Challenged by Warm Temperatures

Lena Hanschka of Colby College in t-shirt weather on the Mt. Hunter Plateau. Photo Courtesy of Gabe Lewis.

Scientists have completed another season of ice core collection on the Mt. Hunter plateau. The team of four, from Dartmouth and Colby Colleges, spent three weeks in the Alaska Range extracting samples. While the consistent sunny skies made it easier for winter camping, warm temperatures were challenging for drilling and preserving the ice core samples. 

David Polashenski sets up gear in the Alaska Range. Photo courtesy of Gabe Lewis.

KTNA’s Katie Writer spoke with Dartmouth’s Gabe Lewis, a PhD candidate in glaciology, about the ice core extraction and keeping it frozen on its long journey back to the Dartmouth College Science Laboratory. 

Gabe Lewis prepares to return to Dartmouth College after collecting ice core samples in the Alaska Range. Photo by Katie Writer – KTNA.