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Comment by henearkr | Hacker News Reader

They should put vaults in Antarctica though.

Much safer, and the mainland Antarctica will not likely melt.

Norway however only has territory in the Arctic (which is an island that is not going to melt as well), and there were not any other takers.

Norway claims territory in Antarctica too, but these claims are only recognized by a handful of states who also claim land in Antarctica...

The lack of recognition doesn't really preclude construction that can be justified as for scientific purposes, though.

Convenience is more important.

Norway has claim to a huge area of Antarctica. Queen Maud's land. Subject to the Antarctic Treaty and also recognized by UK, France Australia, etc.

The odds of the Arctic becoming ice-free, including continental ice, are really disturbing. See the reports on the probable collapse of the Greenland ice.

Whereas there are no such concern in Antarctica, only its ice shelves are threatened.

Antarctica's ice is continually sliding into the sea. Anything embedded in it will eventually get dumped on the sea-floor as it melts out the bottom of an ice sheet. We have already lost things that were left lying around there.

There are mountains in Antarctica, ice-free spots that can be the location of vaults.

The point of "ice not melting" is not to use ice, but to show you that the land will keep cool even in summer.

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