Into the wild of Antarctica: Scientists, robots and 'pancake ice'

Antarctica - After 12 hours breaking through pack ice, passing groups of penguins and seals on the ice flow, and tracked by pods of Minke whales, we arrive at the edge of the great southern continent. This part of the Antarctic coastline is the windiest place on the planet at sea level and, as we pull alongside the towering ice cliffs in the Russian research ship Akademik Treshnikov, we are whipped and buffeted by their ferocity. The following morning the wind has abated and with blue skies and sunshine, the same giant ice cliffs have a meringue-like appearance. These walls of ice are the edges of glaciers, which stretch more than 40km from land out over the ocean. Cracked and crevassed, chunks of ice periodically "calve" from these glaciers, forming icebergs that are driven offshore by wind and current.