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Russian Team Prepares To Penetrate Lake Vostok

Posted by Soulskill on from the in-soviet-russia,-lake-uhh-nevermind dept.

Lanxon writes "Lake Vostok, which has been sealed off from the world for 14 million years, is about to be penetrated by a Russian drill bit. The lake, which lies four kilometers below the icy surface of Antarctica, is unique in that it's been completely isolated from the other 150 subglacial lakes on the continent for such a long time. It's also oligotropic, meaning that it's supersaturated with oxygen — levels of the element are 50 times higher than those found in most typical freshwater lakes."

4 of 237 comments (clear)

  1. In Soviet.... by tverbeek · · Score: 5, Funny

    In Soviet Antarctica, buried lake penetrates drill hole!

    Seriously. RTFA.

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    http://alternatives.rzero.com/
  2. Re:Anybody else feel like this is a bad idea? by bluefoxlucid · · Score: 5, Funny

    To be fair, theory and practice are in theory identical; in practice, not so much.

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  3. Re:You think your working conditions are bad... by Shompol · · Score: 5, Funny

    When it is -30C, Russians take their towels and beach umbrellas, drill a hole in the ice and go swimming.
    When it becomes -65C they cannot find any water in liquid state, so someone came up with this bright idea to drill a hole to an ancient lake, just so they can have a pool in winter.

  4. Re:Look Up by mswhippingboy · · Score: 5, Funny

    Would it be impolite to point out that she has accomplished far more in life than you or I have, or probably ever will? If Sarah Palin is dumb, therefore, there's a significantly greater than zero chance that you and I are even dumber.

    That is based on the ridiculous notion that intelligence equates to fame. To make this point, I only have two words - "Jersey Shore".

    --
    Sometimes the light at the end of the tunnel is the headlight of an oncoming train.