Since the 2011-2012 research season, scientists from the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI) have used the Princess Elisabeth Antarctica as a base for aerial surveys over East Antarctica with the Polar 6 aircraft.

During the 2018-2019 season, the aircraft collected radar profiles along transects at the Antarctic coast and on the Antarctic Plateau. These measurements were used to determine the thickness and density of both the inland ice and coastal ice shelves.

The data contributes to a better understanding of how the Antarctic ice mass balance is changing and to what extent these changes are linked to climate change.