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Slow-moving mantle waves helped Antarctica freeze millions of years before Arctic, study finds

Computer simulations indicate tectonic uplift created high elevations in East Antarctica, allowing permanent ice sheets to form during warmer global temperatures.

Updated Aug 26, 2026 · 03:17 UTC1 reports

The short version

  • An international study published in Science found that deep Earth forces raised East Antarctica's terrain, allowing ice to form 34 million years ago while global temperatures were about 5ºC warmer than today.
  • Computer simulations showed slow-moving mantle waves lifted parts of East Antarctica above 2 kilometers in altitude, lowering local temperatures and seeding mountain glaciers.
  • The findings explain why Antarctica froze millions of years before the Arctic, pointing to tectonic elevation rather than falling carbon dioxide levels alone as a key catalyst for polar ice sheet formation.

Key facts

  • An international study led by the University of Southampton concluded that mantle waves deep within Earth gradually lifted East Antarctica over 100 million years following its breakup from Africa.[ScienceDaily]
  • Models showed that parts of East Antarctica, including the Gamburtsev Mountains, climbed above the 2-kilometer elevation threshold by roughly 45 million years ago, creating conditions cold enough for mountain glaciers to expand.[ScienceDaily]
  • The East Antarctic Ice Sheet fully formed approximately 34 million years ago, whereas major Northern Hemisphere ice sheets did not develop until about 5 million years ago.[ScienceDaily]
  • Researchers estimated that the ice-albedo effect from the expanding ice sheet reflected sunlight and lowered global temperatures by approximately 1ºC.[ScienceDaily]
  • The East Antarctic Ice Sheet currently holds enough water to raise global sea levels by about 52 meters if it were to melt completely.[ScienceDaily]

What remains uncertain

  • The study relies on computational models to reconstruct 100 million years of mantle movement and surface evolution, which simulate historical geological dynamics rather than direct historical measurement.[ScienceDaily]

Sources