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One Giant Leap

When studying sea ice on the Antarctic coastline, scientists have to be prepared for just about anything, including gaps in the landscape. Guy Williams, an Australian researcher on the recent Sea Ice Physics and Ecosystem Experiment, was investigating the surface expression of a 55-feet-deep ridge found in data gathered from below the ice by the autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) Jaguar when he had to make this leap. No worries, though; the gap was less than six feet deep and filled with plenty of soft snow.

(Photo by Peter Kimball, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)