Service and Engineers has landed in Antarctica to test a new drone that will help experts forecast the impact of climate change. The device will enable researchers to access parts of the continent that were previously out of bounds because of the harsh weather conditions. Our climate reporter, Georgina Renard, reports.

Scientists are fighting to understand how climate change is altering Antarctica. Decades ago, they traveled by foot and poor before taking to the air. Oh, it's probably though. But now they need technology that works whatever the weather. This could be the answer. A new drone, tested not in Antarctica, but in Errerree, also calls no where the wild weather of North Wales put it through its paces.

We have a 700 L Pala Bay down to-Is that in here? Yeah, I can show you. Can we open it?

Wow. So it's like opening a car boot.

Yeah, pretty much. Most of the sensors are It's actually going to be fitted in here. It increases safety because you don't have a pilot on board, which means that you can bring this aircraft to more remote locations. It's been designed to basically withstand harsh environments and challenging conditions. I'll keep monitoring throughout the flight.

The drone is autonomous, and Rebecca will oversee its flights from a computer at base in Antarctica. Researchers have used drones before, but this one is bigger. It can travel up to a thousand kilometers in one trip and needs just a fraction of the fuel a traditional plane uses, so it's also better for the planet. Joining Rebecca will be scientist Tom Jordan. He's mapped Antarctica before, but now he needs more data. He'll use radar on the drone to draw a picture of what's under the ice sheets to help predict how fast they could melt.

So the spiky bits in the middle, this is actually a mountain range about the size of the European Alps. And looking around, you can see other areas which look suspiciously smooth. Actually, they're not smooth at all. These are gaps in our knowledge, just gaps in the map. It's just that no one has ever been there to make these measurements.

Before Tom leaves for Antarctica, we check in with the base.

How's the weather? This season, has it been panning out okay?

For us, really, the weather is everything. We only fly when conditions are conducive to flying. In the winter, we see winds of 70 knots at times, so that's about 75 miles per hour on the station. The landscape you can see behind me, it'll certainly be flying over there. It'll be carrying out survey work and environmental measurements in that area and wider afield also.

This drone won't stop the ice melting, but the knowledge it gives us will help us prepare for our planet's future. Georgina Ranard, BBC News.