However, it was only in the 1990s that British scientists, with the help of radar, were able to determine the full extent of the sub-glacial feature.

BBC: Antarctic Lake Vostok yields 'new bacterial life'

Despite the animosity, however, the most striking feature of the Senate contest is the extent to which it is animated by the same issues that dominate the presidential campaign.

ECONOMIST: America��s focus group

The salient feature of American public life today is the extent to which the business of the permanent campaign has come to dominate the business of government.

ECONOMIST: India's labour divisions

There has been a sense for some weeks that they have been looking for a way out, and one interesting feature of the deal which has been emerging this weekend is the extent to which it concentrates on public security measures like CCTV cameras, speed ramps and police patrolling.

BBC: Twelve depressing weeks