Paleo Slide Set: Polar Ice Cores
Cross section of how ice core is sectioned

As mentioned earlier, one of the major advantages of the revolutionary GISP2 
drill is the size of the core it takes: 13.2 cm in diameter, containing 75% more 
ice than the 10 cm diameter cores taken at other high-latitude sites. This figure 
shows how the core is sliced up and different portions allotted to various analytical 
and archival purposes. Some ice procedures are consumptive, meaning their analysis 
requires the destruction of ice, while others have no effect upon the ice. Notice how 
much of the core is reserved for archival purposes, preserving this long record of 
earth history for future research. 

Photo Credits:
Mark Twickler 
GISP2 SMO, University of New Hampshire.