Rare close encounter with Antarctic minke whale caught on camera

Scientists trialling new underwater camera gear in Antarctica have just discovered the equipment they thought was broken actually captured a rare close encounter with a minke whale.

Minke whales are considered the champions of ice navigation, and there's an estimated 180,000 of them in the Ross Sea region alone.

While the mammal itself is not rare, experts believe underwater footage of them in the Ross Sea has never been captured before.