After finally drilling through four kilometers of Antarctic ice, Russian scientists have reached a lake that has been sealed for the past 20 million years.
Professor John Priscu, a veteran Antarctic researcher, anticipates discovering ‘unique organisms’ within the lake.
However, it appears that sub-glacial Lake Vostok, a water body comparable in size to Lake Ontario, may hold even more surprises.
As scientists commenced their quest for new life, a state-funded news outlet in Russia alleged that an astonishing cache of Hitler’s archives could be hidden in a secret Nazi ice bunker near the location of the recent breakthrough.
According to RIA Novosti, the Russian state news agency, ‘It is believed that towards the close of World War II, the Nazis relocated to the South Pole and began building a base at Lake Vostok.’
It referenced Admiral Karl Dontiz’s statement in 1943: ‘Germany’s submarine fleet takes pride in having built an impregnable fortress for the Fuhrer on the other side of the world,’ located in Antarctica.
German naval records indicate that shortly after the Nazis capitulated to the Allies in April 1945, a U-530 submarine reached the South Pole from the Port of Kiel.
There are rumors that the crew constructed a still-hidden ice cave ‘and allegedly stored several boxes of relics from the Third Reich, including Hitler’s secret documents.’
A subsequent claim suggested that a U-977 submarine transported the remains of Hitler and Eva Braun to Antarctica, believing they could be 
cloned from their DNA. It was said that the submariners then went to Argentina to surrender.
Microbiologists indicate that the lake could provide insights into unique life forms. The venture has garnered close attention from NASA as well as the Russian Space Agency.
A major hope is that it may shed light on the conditions on Europa, one of Jupiter’s moons, where water is suspected to exist beneath a thick layer of ice.
‘Finding microorganisms in Lake Vostok may signify that we could possibly encounter extraterrestrial life on Europa,’ remarked Dr. Vladimir Kotlyakov, Director of the Geography Institute at the Russian Academy of Sciences.
Now, specialists at the Russian Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute will analyze a sample of water that has been extracted from the lake and frozen.
Could the Russian ‘station’ close to Lake Vostok house the remains of Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun?
Experts believe the lake, potentially with a water volume equivalent to Lake Ontario, could unveil previously unobserved lifeforms.
Previously, last year, the expedition was halted 10 to 50 meters short of the lake when adverse weather conditions forced scientists to abandon their mission.
Scholars assert they have come across ‘the only giant super-clean water system on the planet,’ predicting that the remarkable 5,400 cubic kilometers of pristine water will be ‘twice as clean as double-distilled water,’ with any life forms having evolved in complete isolation.
‘We’re not suggesting the discovery of a new Loch Ness Monster – though the truth is that we cannot fully predict what we might find,’ an expedition source told RIA Novosti.A moving body of water lies beneath the lake ice, providing an oxygen supply even nearly 4 km below the surface, with microorganisms already detected in the ice core obtained close to Lake Vostok’s ceiling.
In an email to usnews.com, Professor John Priscu noted that the crews had been tirelessly working ’round the clock’ to complete the project before the conclusion of the Antarctic summer, after which flights from the remote Vostok Station, where temperatures are currently around minus 66C, would be impossible.
‘If they succeed, it will revolutionize our scientific methods in Antarctica and give us an entirely new perspective on what lies beneath the extensive Antarctic ice sheet,’ he remarked.
Geothermal heat beneath the ice ensures the lake remains in a liquid state, with its environment often referred to as ‘alien’ due to its similarities to the subterranean lakes found on Europa, one of Jupiter’s moons.
‘I believe we will discover unique organisms,’ stated Professor Priscu, a microbiologist from the University of Montana and an experienced Antarctic researcher participating in the expedition, during an interview with Scientific American.
On January 13, Mr. Priscu reported that the team was making good progress, achieving a drilling rate of 5.7ft per day. They had transitioned from an ice drill to a thermal drill to melt through the final 16 to 32ft of ice.
‘This was the strategy, but conditions on the ground can lead to changes,’ remarked Priscu, who has been in contact with the group from his office in St. Petersburg.
‘This endeavor is unprecedented,’ Priscu highlighted. ‘We’re dealing with a unique drill, an exceptional borehole, and an unparalleled lake, which means they are undoubtedly making real-time decisions constantly.’
The team faced a Tuesday deadline, ahead of the already frigid temperatures plunging another 40 degrees centigrade in the stark location.
Last month, Valery Lukin, chief of the Russian Antarctic Expedition, expressed: ‘We are uncertain about what awaits us down there.’
Vostok Station recorded its coldest temperature ever on July 21, 1983, reaching minus 89.2C.
When the critical moment arrives, great care must be taken to avoid contaminating the concealed underground ecosystem with bacteria and drilling fluids.
To ensure the water remains entirely untainted, the machinery will not come into direct contact with the lake.
Instead, suction will be employed to draw samples of the unique water into the borehole, where it will freeze before being brought to the surface for analytical study.
The team is also facing the potential danger of an explosion caused by oxygen and nitrogen trapped below the surface.
They are taking precautions to allow only a minimal amount of air to escape, thereby reducing the risk.
Scientists have been drilling continuously, working in three shifts, as they rush to break through before winter sets in.
Environmental organizations have criticized the operations at the site, particularly regarding the chemicals like kerosene used to maintain an open hole.
Additionally, some believe that the site should remain unexplored and left in its pristine state.
by Sel Hurst
