Australia plans drill of ancient Antarctic ice core

SYDNEY (AFP) - Australia has announced plans to drill a 2,000 year-old ice core in the heart of Antarctica in a bid to retrieve a frozen record of how the planet has evolved and what might be in store.

The Aurora Basin North project involves scientists from Australia, France, Denmark and the United States who hope it will also advance the search for the scientific "holy grail" of the million-year-old ice core.

The project, in a area that harbours some of the deepest ice in the frozen continent, over three kilometres thick, will give experts access to some of the most detailed records yet of past climate in the vast region.

Australian Environment Minister Tony Burke said such drills were critically important to understanding how the climate has naturally varied to help predict future responses to global climate change.