NASA Radar Reveals Cold War-Era Military Base Buried in Greenland Ice

Camp Century, a secret U.S. military base built in 1959, was rediscovered during an April 2024 NASA survey, raising concerns over buried hazardous waste and climate change impacts.

NASA scientists used advanced radar technology to locate Camp Century, a Cold War-era military base buried 100 feet beneath Greenland’s ice sheet.
The base, constructed in 1959 under the guise of scientific research, was part of the secretive Project Iceworm, which aimed to house nuclear missiles targeting the Soviet Union.
Camp Century was abandoned in 1967, leaving behind significant amounts of hazardous waste, including radioactive materials and diesel fuel, now buried under decades of snow and ice.
Climate change-induced ice melt could expose the buried waste by 2090, posing potential environmental risks to the region and beyond.
The radar data collected during the survey also helps refine ice thickness mapping, crucial for predicting sea level rise linked to global warming.