Report on Subglacial Topography in East Antarctica and its Implications for Sustainable Development Goals

Executive Summary of Research Findings

A multi-institutional research team, led by Durham University, has identified extensive, previously unmapped ancient landscapes beneath the East Antarctic Ice Sheet. These findings have significant implications for achieving global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly those related to climate and environmental stability.

• Radar measurements revealed vast, flat surfaces buried beneath a 3,500 km stretch of the ice sheet.
• These landscapes are believed to have been formed by large river systems more than 34 million years ago, before the continent was covered by ice.
• The preserved surfaces are now separated by deep troughs that channel fast-flowing glaciers, while the ice above the flat areas moves more slowly.
• This discovery, published in Nature Geoscience, suggests these subglacial features act as natural barriers, regulating the rate of ice loss.

Direct Implications for SDG 13: Climate Action

The study provides critical data for addressing SDG 13 (Climate Action) by enhancing the scientific understanding of climate change impacts. The stability of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet, which holds enough water to raise global sea levels by 52 meters, is a paramount concern for global climate resilience.

• Improving Climate Models: The discovery allows for the refinement of ice-sheet behavior models. By incorporating the braking effect of these flat surfaces, scientists can generate more accurate projections of future ice loss and its contribution to sea-level rise under various warming scenarios.
• Informing Policy and Adaptation: Accurate predictions are fundamental for policymakers to develop effective climate adaptation and mitigation strategies, strengthening resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards as targeted by SDG 13.
• Highlighting Urgency: The research underscores the immense scale of potential sea-level rise, reinforcing the urgent need for global cooperation to combat climate change and its impacts.

Broader Impacts on Related Sustainable Development Goals

The findings have cascading effects on several interconnected SDGs, demonstrating how polar research is integral to global sustainable development.

1. SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities) & SDG 14 (Life Below Water): Enhanced predictions of sea-level rise are vital for the protection of coastal communities and infrastructure worldwide. This knowledge supports SDG 11 by enabling cities to plan for climate resilience. It also aids SDG 14 by helping to conserve coastal and marine ecosystems threatened by rising seas and changing ocean conditions.
2. SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure): The research itself is a product of scientific innovation and advanced technological application (ice-penetrating radar). The resulting data directly supports SDG 9 by providing essential information for planning and building resilient infrastructure capable of withstanding future climate impacts.
3. SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals): This research exemplifies the power of global partnerships. The collaboration between universities and research institutes in the UK, Germany, and China highlights the necessity of international cooperation to address complex scientific challenges and advance the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Future Research and Recommendations

To fully leverage these findings for the advancement of the SDGs, the research team emphasizes the need for continued investigation.

• Further exploration is required to understand how these subglacial landscapes influenced ice sheet movement during past warmer periods.
• A key recommendation is to conduct direct sampling by drilling through the ice to retrieve rock from the flat surfaces.
• This future work will provide crucial data on when these areas were last ice-free, further improving predictive models and supporting long-term strategies for global climate resilience.

SDGs Addressed in the Article

• SDG 13: Climate Action

  The article is fundamentally about climate change research. It discusses understanding the East Antarctic Ice Sheet to “refine projections of how the East Antarctic Ice Sheet might react to climate change” and predict its impact on global sea levels. This directly relates to taking action to combat climate change and its impacts.

• SDG 14: Life Below Water

  The research directly addresses a major threat to marine and coastal ecosystems: sea-level rise. The article states that the complete melting of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet “has the potential to raise global sea levels by 52 meters,” which would have a catastrophic impact on oceans and coastlines worldwide. The research contributes to the scientific knowledge needed to understand and protect marine environments.

• SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

  A significant rise in sea levels, as discussed in the article, poses a direct existential threat to coastal cities and human settlements. By improving predictions of sea-level rise, the research provides critical information for long-term urban planning, disaster risk reduction, and climate adaptation strategies for these communities.

• SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals

  The article explicitly highlights international collaboration as a key component of the research. It mentions that the “research team also included the universities of Newcastle, Edinburgh and Exeter, UK, the British Antarctic Survey, the Alfred Wegener Institute, Germany, the Polar Research Institute of China, and Beijing University of Technology.” This multi-country partnership exemplifies the spirit of global cooperation to address shared challenges.

Specific SDG Targets Identified

1. SDG 13: Climate Action

   • Target 13.2: Integrate climate change measures into national policies, strategies and planning.
     
     Explanation: The research aims to provide more accurate data that can be integrated into climate models. The article states that adding the newly discovered surfaces’ effects into models “could help refine projections of how the East Antarctic Ice Sheet might react to climate change,” which is a prerequisite for effective policy and planning.
   • Target 13.3: Improve education, awareness-raising and human and institutional capacity on climate change mitigation, adaptation, impact reduction and early warning.
     
     Explanation: This scientific discovery, published in the journal Nature Geoscience, directly contributes to the body of knowledge on climate change impacts. It improves the capacity of the scientific community to understand and predict sea-level rise, which is a crucial part of impact reduction and early warning.

2. SDG 14: Life Below Water

   • Target 14.a: Increase scientific knowledge, develop research capacity and transfer marine technology…
     
     Explanation: The entire study is an exercise in increasing scientific knowledge about a process that directly affects the world’s oceans. The research lead author notes, “The landscape hidden beneath the East Antarctic Ice Sheet is one of the most mysterious not just on Earth,” highlighting the contribution to fundamental scientific knowledge.

3. SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

   • Target 11.b: …adopt and implement integrated policies and plans towards… adaptation to climate change, disaster risk reduction…
     
     Explanation: The research provides foundational data necessary for cities and settlements to create effective adaptation plans against the disaster of sea-level rise. The article’s focus on improving predictions for “impact on global sea levels” is directly aimed at informing these long-term plans.

4. SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals

   • Target 17.6: Enhance North-South, South-South and triangular regional and international cooperation on and access to science, technology and innovation…
     
     Explanation: The article explicitly details a multi-national research effort involving institutions from the UK, Germany, and China, which is a clear example of international cooperation on science to address a global challenge.

Indicators for Measuring Progress

1. Implied Indicators for SDG 13 (Climate Action)

   • Rate of ice loss from Antarctica: The article states that “Ice loss from Antarctica is increasing,” making this a key metric for tracking climate change’s physical impact.
   • Accuracy of climate projection models: The research’s stated goal is to “refine projections” and “help make it easier to predict how the East Antarctic Ice Sheet could affect sea levels,” implying that the accuracy of these models is a measure of progress.

2. Implied Indicators for SDG 14 (Life Below Water)

   • Potential impact on global sea levels: The article quantifies this potential impact (“raise global sea levels by 52 meters”), making it a critical indicator of the risk to marine and coastal systems.
   • Number of international scientific publications on polar/ocean research: The publication of the findings in Nature Geoscience serves as an indicator of increased scientific knowledge and dissemination.

3. Implied Indicators for SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals)

   • Number of joint international scientific research projects: The collaboration mentioned between institutions in the UK, Germany, and China is a direct example of this indicator.

Summary of SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Source: sciencedaily.com