NASA satellite images show skull-like formation on Antarctica's Vega Island
Recent satellite imagery also reveals significant areas of exposed glacier ice following an unusually warm winter in the region.
NASA satellite images have captured a formation on Vega Island in Antarctica that resembles a grinning human skull, according to a report by the Hindustan Times.
Located in the Weddell Sea east of the Antarctic Peninsula, the island features a rocky peak that looks like an eye socket, a lateral moraine forming a mouth, and the Bahía del Diablo Glacier acting as a jawbone.
The images were taken by the Operational Land Imager on the Landsat 9 satellite on March 22, 2025, and October 10, 2026. While the March 2025 image shows the island covered in snow, the October 2026 photograph shows large patches of darker, exposed ice.
Glaciologist Mauri Pelto of Nichols College said the exposed ice was caused in part by temperatures that were higher than average during the Antarctic winter, specifically in June 2026. Pelto noted that limited snowfall, strong winds, and sublimation also played a role, stating, “The winter season was no treat for these glaciers.”
Pelto warned that darker ice absorbs more solar energy than snow, which could speed up melting during the upcoming Antarctic summer. He explained that while snow preserves the skull shape, exposure to melt will cause it to weather away, changing the eye socket and jawline.
A 1982 study identified 29 glaciers on the island. Researchers have monitored the Devil's Bay Glacier since the 1998–1999 Antarctic summer, documenting a decline in its mass alongside ice loss and exposed bedrock elsewhere on Vega Island.