INTERESTING DISCOVERIES.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 466, 26 March 1909, Page 6

INTERESTING DISCOVERIES.

SEAWARD MOVEMENT OF THE BARRIER. FORMER MILD CLIMATE AT THE I'OLE. VBT TELBOBAHI—PKKS3 ASSOCIATION.) Chrtstchurch, March 26. Professor David, interviewed, said ther» can now bo little doubt that tho Great Ice Barrier is formed partly of glacial ice and partly of snow. This view as to its origin is rendered highly probablo through tho discovery by Lieutenant Shackleton and his party of the vast glacier 50 miles wido and 120 miles long descending from an elevated inland plateau, over 10,000 feet abovo tho soa level. This glaciof is probably ono of many which go to feed tho Great Barrier. "Important evidence was found by Mao lutosh and tho depoMaying party as to actual seaward movement of tho Barrier caused by pressure of tho inland glacier iurther south. It was found that tho Discovery depot "A," near Minna Bluff, had travelled two geographical miles to east-north-oast in a period of six years, and two months. It was also proved by tho samo P j ojfiht feet two inches of snow had fallen during tho samo interval of timo at the present sito of Depot "A." This may bo considered to bo a fair average estimate of tho snowfall for tho Barrier in this latitude. It is obvious, therefore, that as tho head of the Barrier is approximately 300 or 400 miles south of its seaward front, there is timo for many hundreds of feet of thickness of snow to accumulate on tho surfaco of slowly moving glacial ice before it traverses tho abovo distanco in order to reach tho sea front, from which icebergs aro from timo to timo broken off. "Ono of tho most important geological results of the expedition is to provo that Atretic region from Ross Sea to the I South 1 010 is a great continental area in tho nature of a high plateau, its northern extremity near Cape North being from 6000 to 7000 feet abovo soa level, and about 10,500 feet at the furthermost point reached by Lioutonajit Shackleton and party, 88 degrees 23 minutes south. This plateau continues across to tho South Polo for somo distanco, and probably extends onwards in tho direction of South America towards Coats Land discovered by Bruco. "Tho discovery of coal measures and of thick measures of limestono as far as 80 degrees south is obviously of extreme interest, as showing a former mild climate closo to tho South Polo, for both limestone and coal occur only under such conditions. This coal measure and limestono formations extend in almost uninterrupted sheet from 85 degrees south to tho Magnetic Polo, a distanco of over 1000 miles.

' 'Tlio result tof tho meteorological observations were being worked up, and it was hoped they would provo eminently useful to Now Zealand and Australia."