00:00Antarctica just did something scientists didn't expect.
00:03It gained a record amount of ice.
00:05Between 2021 and 23, the continent's ice sheet added about 695 billion tons of mass,
00:12the biggest gain ever recorded by satellite.
00:15Researchers led by China's Institute of Oceanology
00:17traced the surprise increase to something happening thousands of miles away.
00:22Sustained warming in the tropical western Pacific and eastern Indian Ocean.
00:26That distant warming altered global atmospheric circulation,
00:30sending waves of extra moisture and snowfall toward East Antarctica.
00:34But before anyone celebrates, scientists are clear this doesn't reverse the bigger picture.
00:40Antarctica has been losing about 140 billion tons of ice per year on average over the past two decades.
00:46And this temporary gain doesn't change that downward trend.
00:49What it does reveal is a previously unknown connection
00:52between tropical ocean temperatures and polar snowfall.
00:56One that researchers say tends to recur roughly once a decade.
01:00Offering new clues about how Antarctica's ice sheet and future sea levels could behave.
01:05Disclosure.
01:06This video contains stock footage and content created or enhanced using AI-assisted tools.
