National Geographic reports on Antarctica research expedition by Hall, grad student
National Geographic reported on research conducted at Thwaites Glacier in Antarctica by Meghan Spoth, a master’s student in the University of Maine School of Earth and Climate Sciences; her adviser Brenda Hall, a professor in the School of Earth and Climate Sciences and Climate Change Institute; and researchers from other universities. As part of the International Thwaites Glacier Collaboration, the team is investigating the disintegration rate of the glacier in the past to inform more accurate models of how fast sea levels will rise in the coming century, the article states. The mission is notable for more than just the research — 16 of the 57 total members on the expedition are women, including nine out of the 22 scientists, making it part of a larger effort to expand the role of women in the historically male-dominated field of polar science, according to National Geographic.