The discovery of the Halley Bay colony and the discovery of new colonies of Emperor penguins in Antarctica highlight the importance of surveillance of the Antarctic ecosystem
An extraordinary discovery has emerged from Antarctica thanks to the satellite Sentinel-2 of the European program Copernicus. Il British Antarctic Survey announced the discovery of a colony of Emperor penguins who was believed to have disappeared. There colony of Halley Baywhich moved east of the previous one due to the detachment of a huge iceberg from the Brunt Ice Shelf, was spotted 30 kilometers away from its original location. Furthermore, new colonies of penguins emerge. Indeed, constant monitoring of the Antarctic continent has revealed not only the recovery of the Halley Bay colony, but also the discovery of new colonies, bringing the total to 66. These findings highlight the changing conditions ofAntarctic environmentinfluenced by global warming and changes in coastal sea ice.
Using satellites to observe Emperor penguins
The Emperor penguin colonies they are found in remote and often inaccessible places. Researchers rely on satellites, such as Sentinel-2, to locate these colonies. THE satellites they can detect the brown spots of bird guano on the stark white of ice and snow, making it easier to spot colonies. Despite the new findings, predictions for the future of emperor penguin populations are worrying. The studiosi del British Antarctic Survey reported a serious decline in the reproduction of these emblematic animals earlier in the year. The loss of sea icecaused by global warming, has been identified as the main threat to the survival of these species. Peter Fretwell of the British Antarctic Survey commented:
All but one of the colonies are small, with fewer than 1,000 birds, so even those now identified make little difference to the overall population size. In fact, the achievement has been all but overshadowed by recently reported reproductive failures.
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