Emperor penguins need sea ice to breed and are located in areas that are very difficult to study because they are remote and often inaccessible and can experience temperatures as low as −76°F (−60°C). Previous discoveries of emperor penguin colonies show gaps between them, leading scientists to suspect that groups like to keep at least 60 miles (100km) between themselves. They spotted 11 new emperor penguin colonies, three of which were previously identified but never confirmed. At the time it was estimated the continent had between 265,500 and 278,500 breeding pairs.