Australian scientists will soon travel more than 1,200 kilometres over Antarctic ice to discover the secrets of atmospheric climate change.
Australia is part of an international project to drill deep into an ice core to sample air pockets trapped in ice and time.
The project was delayed two Antarctic seasons during the pandemic, with research bases unable to cooperate due to the risk of spreading COVID-19.
The Australian Antarctic Division's chief scientist, Nicole Webster, told the ABC that the project was crucial for understanding climate change.
"We are ready and prepared to undertake the traverse out to Little Dome C – a 1,200-kilometre journey inland from Casey Station up to a plateau that's about 3,200 metres in elevation," Professor Webster told the ABC.
"We will be establishing the field camp and preparing the drill so that in subsequent seasons we can really make substantive progress on the 2.8 kilometres of ice that needs to be cored to reconstruct a million years of history."
Professor Webster spoke to the ABC from the inaugural Antarctic Science Symposium in Canberra, which is an effort to align policy and scientific goals.
About 800 tonnes of cargo have already travelled from Hobart to Antarctica to prepare for the drilling, which has been more than a decade in planning.
Icebreaker research vessel out of use
Professor Webster said broader science work has "been constrained" this season, due to the unavailability of the Nuyina research vessel and icebreaker.
The ship is currently in Singapore undergoing maintenance on the hydraulic control system and propulsion.
Two replacement vessels have been hired but do not have the same scientific research capabilities.
The Morrison government outlined a 10-year plan to boost Australia's presence within the 42 per cent of the continent claimed by Australia, despite such claims being paused under an international treaty.
Professor Webster told the ABC that was still an important consideration in Australian science and research.
"Most of our information about science comes from that conducted on a single ship, or our three stations, or our sub-Antarctic Macquarie Island Station," Professor Webster said.
"But the Australian Antarctic territory spans 42 per cent of the continent, so that is a lot of area where we don't have the detailed scientific observations that we need to understand how fast Antarctica is changing due to climate change."
