How Antarctica Got Its Ice

Ice sheets such as those on Greenland and Antarctica today not only respond to changing climate but also can cause climate to change. Their sizes have fluctuated substantially in the past. In particular, Antarctica was effectively ice-free until its ice cover began to expand rapidly at the Eocene-Oligocene boundary around 34 million years ago. Recent research helps to identify the mechanisms that led to this rapid ice sheet growth.   http://science.sciencemag.org/content/352/6281/34