Chinese Antarctic inland exploration team arrives at Grove Mountains

GROVE MOUNTAINS, Antarctica, Dec. 28 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese exploration squad arrived here on Sunday night and initiated comprehensive scientific exploration.

Having trekking through an 1.5-meter-wide ice crack, the inland exploration squad entered Grove Mountains at 8 p.m. local time (1500 GMT).

Huang Feixin, head of the squad, said that in the next six weeks, his squad will explore Mason Peak -- Grove Mountains' summit -- as well as Mount Harding and Grove Mountains' meteorolite-rich areas.

The squad is expected to return to China's Antarctic Zhongshan Station in the first half of February, said Huang.

During the exploration, Huang said, scientists will climb MasonPeak, study Grove Mountains' icecap evolution since the Cenozoic Era by analyzing geologic structures, soil, sedimentary rocks, palynology assemblage, cosmogenic nuclides. Meanwhile, they will be on meteorolite collecting missions, trying to make China's possession of Antarctic meteorolite exceed 10,000 pieces.

Located in Princess Elizabeth Land, east Antarctica, Grove Mountains sit between China's Zhongshan Station and its Kunlun Station. It is one of rare areas in the Antarctica where mountain peaks jut out from icecaps, hiding numerous ancient secrets about the Earth's geological and climate changes, as well as its circling around the Sun.

China had performed four explorations to Grove Mountains. Chinese scientists have collected more than 9,800 pieces of Antarctic meteorolite, making China stand only behind the United States and Japan in terms of possession of Antarctic meteorolite.