In a stunning revelation, NASA's use of advanced radar technology has led to the rediscovery of an underground installation beneath Greenland's vast ice sheet, originally known as Camp Century.
According to the New York Post, this discovery showcases the clandestine Cold War-era base intended for nuclear missile operations, unbeknownst to Denmark.
In April, a NASA Gulfstream III aircraft equipped with specialized radar detected anomalies beneath the ice that piqued the interest of researchers. The aircraft, part of an ongoing study to understand the ice sheet dynamics, stumbled upon the long-abandoned Cold War relic.
The underground structure, dubbed "Project Iceworm," was ostensibly a research facility when the United States first approached Denmark with the proposal. However, the true motive was to house a network of missile launch sites capable of reaching the Soviet Union, a fact kept secret from the Danish government.
At its conception, Camp Century was quite ambitious, sprawling a proposed 3,000 miles of tunnels and capable of harboring up to 600 Iceman missiles. These weapons would have had enough firepower to target and potentially destroy 80% of key sites in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe.
In 1960, under the guise of scientific research, construction began on this massive project initiated by President Dwight D. Eisenhower. The camp was planned to be three times the size of Denmark and feature 2,000 firing positions embedded within the ice.
It was not until 1997 that the true purpose of Project Iceworm came to light, revealing the extent of the strategic military planning hidden beneath the icy facade. This project aimed to maintain an upper hand in the nuclear arms race against the Soviet bloc during the height of the Cold War.
The infrastructure included cut-and-cover tunnels, situated 28 feet beneath the surface, designed specifically for missile deployment. However, this elaborate plan was not to come to fruition.
The shifting nature of the Greenland Ice Sheet posed significant engineering challenges, eventually leading to the abandonment and decommissioning of Camp Century in 1967.
The rediscovery of Camp Century was facilitated by NASA's UAVSAR (Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar), which is designed to penetrate deep into ice layers and map the interfaces between ice and bedrock.
Alex Gardner, a cryospheric scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, expressed his surprise during the mission. “We were looking for the bed of the ice and out pops Camp Century,” he remarked, capturing the unexpected moment of discovery.
Chad Greene, another NASA scientist involved in the project, explained their primary mission focused on calibrating and validating the capabilities of UAVSAR. The tool's effectiveness in uncovering historical data from beneath the ice was an accidental but welcome outcome.
The story of Camp Century adds a fascinating layer to both the history of the Cold War and the capabilities of modern scientific tools. While originally intended for war, today the site offers invaluable data for understanding ice sheet dynamics and climate change.
“We didn’t know what it was at first,” Gardner added, highlighting the initial confusion and subsequent intrigue that led to a deeper investigation into the ice-entombed structure.
This finding not only sheds light on past military strategies but also demonstrates the evolving relationship between military history and scientific exploration. It underscores the importance of transparency in international affairs while providing a unique glimpse into a frozen time capsule of geopolitical tension.
