. Earth Science News .
900,000-year-old ice retrieved from the Antarctic
BERN (AFP) Jan 14, 2005
European scientists have recovered ice which is 900,000 years old, the oldest ever found, in the Antarctic during research into the continent's climate, the University of Bern announced Friday.

The ice was recovered during drilling to a record depth of 3,270.2 metres (10,792 feet) on December 21 last year, the university said in a press release.

Researchers decided not to drill any deeper to avoid any danger of polluting the underground water table.

The University of Bern is participating in a European research project, named EPICA and involving 10 countries, which is examining changes in the Antarctic climate.

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