Achieving core goals

Tian explains that there are only two suitable windows each year for ice core drilling, during spring and autumn. The team set off at the end of April and returned early last month, overcoming numerous challenges.

The climate at Purog Kangri was a surprise to the team and the first hurdle they had to overcome. Heavy spring rains made the roads extremely difficult to traverse, making transportation of the drilling equipment and freezers challenging.

The team spent a full 10 days covering the 80-kilometer journey from the ice line to the glacier's summit. The planned journey from the glacier's terminus to the glacier's peak was expected to take two days, but in reality, it ended up taking the team two whole weeks.

On May 20, a month after their departure from Kunming, Yunnan province, they finally started drilling and extracting ice cores.