Led by The Institute of Polar Sciences of the National Research Council of Italy (ISP-CNR), the scientists worked for more than 200 days, drilling into the ice and processing the ice core at a remote site in East Antarctica called Little Dome C, with a balmy average summer temperature of -31 degrees Fahrenheit (-35 degrees Celsius).

By drilling 1.7 miles beneath the icy surface, the team has pulled a 1.2 million-year-old ice core from Antarctic bedrock. The gases trapped in the core are expected to yield "high-resolution" insights into Earth's climate history.

In a remarkable scientific achievement, researchers from the Beyond EPICA – Oldest Ice project have successfully drilled a 2,800-meter (9,186-foot) long ice core from the remote Little Dome C site in Antarctica.