An ampoule of Antarctic air from the year 1765 has formed the centrepiece of a new exhibition. It reveals the hidden histories contained in polar ice for the visitors attending the Cop26 climate conference in Glasgow.

Artist Wayne Binitie has spent the last five years undertaking the collaboration with scientists of the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) to analyse and preserve cylinders of ice from deep in the ice sheet that record past climate change.

In what is being termed as a pivotal moment for the planet, the ice cores have allowed Binitie to display in Glasgow. 

The Polar Zero exhibition at the Glasgow Science Centre features a cylindrical glass sculpture containing the air which has been extracted precisely from 1765.

A second cylinder presents an ice core containing tiny bubbles of air that were trapped as snow fell and compacted. Now, they reveal the horrifying rate of increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide since that date.

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The glaciologist Dr Robert Mulvaney, who was responsible for mining the ice for the BAS said that it is possible to drill out ice from a particular era.

He was quoted by The Guardian as saying, “Snow falls in Antarctica year by year – but there’s no melting going on. So the snow builds up and compresses all the years of snow beneath. As we drill down we’re driving further and further into the past – a bit like counting the rings of a big tree.”

“What helps is that every so often we know that a certain volcano blew up in a particular year and we may find evidence of that. So using our drills to find a specific year isn’t quite as hard as you would imagine.”

He explains how the visitors at Polar Zero will hear the ancient air bubbles popping as the ice core emerges from its insulated tube. This will further blend with Binitie’s immersive soundtrack of music and natural sounds and can touch and even taste the iced water.