Other problems with the ice cores include meltwater moving through the ice; Bacteria in the ice releasing gases even in 500,000 - year - old
ice at great depth; and contamination and losses during drilling and core recovery process.
As Jamie [Morison] mentioned, water
at 300 m
depth is much warmer, has a
greater heat content and is continuously present but is still on average unable to contribute to any larger heat flux to the underside of the
ice, due to the strong stratification of the upper Arctic.