A new revelation shows 7600 years old ice in the Juvfonne ice field in the Jotunheimen National Park. It seems the oldest ice of Norway is surfaced at last.
Professor Rune Strand Odegard of the department of Manufacturing and Civil Engineering of NTNU was surprised to see that ice from Juvfonne was so old. The temperature of the climate between 9000-1000 years ago increased and the ice melted in this area. Professor Odegard says that it is very exciting to find the ice that survived even the warm period. That means glaciers in Jotunheimen ultimately help to find the oldest ice of Norway.
The revelation of the old ice in Juvfonne at an elevation of 1850 meters also creates the possibility of finding an older one, Phys.org reported. Juvfonne ice field is located at the base area of the Galdhopiggen in Jotunheimen in Norway. A sample of ice was collected from a tunnel that was built at the base portion of the said ice field. The sample was sent to the Switzerland's Paul Scherrer Institute to explore whether it is the oldest ice of Norway or not.
The Paul Scherrer Institute examined the carbon dating of the ice and revealed that it was 7600 years old. That means it is the oldest ice of Norway. Further examination can also explore the organic material frozen for more than 7000 years in that ice through minute analysis.
Though, no such analysis is done yet. In a word, the oldest ice of Norway becomes an important part in exploring important information about the archaeological aspects in Norway. No doubt the Juvfonne ice field has played a significant role in exploring many opportunities for the future research study.
The current research can also help to find even an older ice and simultaneously can identify the organic material exist under the glaciers in Jotunheimen. So far the most popular archaeological finding from the Jotunheimen's glaciers is the oldest shoe of Norway. It is 3500 years old. But, the oldest ice of Norway is now the oldest archaeological finding.
Research work has been going on since 2010 to measure the internal structure, age and the mass balance of the existing ice in the Juvfonne. The latest discovery of the oldest ice of Norway is obviously the final outcome of that research study. The Cryosphere reported the results of an extensive research about the Juvfonne ice patch in Jotunheimen in Norway from 2009 to 2015. The outcome of the research has explored the existence of the ice patch since the late Mesolithic period.
That means efforts are on to explore many important things, including the climate sensitivity that is responsible for the growth of the glaciers in Jotunheimen. So it can be said that finally, the oldest ice of Norway is visible now. At the same time, it explores many essential aspects that must be essential for future research works.
