For the first time, scientists have confirmed that a major part of Greenland's ice cap, the Prudhoe Dome, was completely gone between 6,000 and 8,200 years ago. It was also when the Prudhoe Dome hadn’t yet formed. This confirmed that Prudhoe Dome began to form only after that period, much later than previously thought. These findings could reshape how scientists identify the most vulnerable sections of the Greenland Ice Sheet and understand where melting is most likely to begin as temperatures rise. The project’s success has opened up possibilities for similar research in other parts of Greenland, where little material from beneath the ice sheet has ever been recovered.