Maps have revealed that a massive iceberg as big as Las Vegas has broken off from an ice shelf in Antarctica.
The iceberg specifically broke off from Antarctica's 500-feet thick Brunt Ice Shelf. This reportedly happened during the wee hours of Monday, following the appearance of a crack a couple of weeks before.
Massive Iceberg Breaks Off From Ice Shelf in Antarctica
This iceberg break-off is now the third major iceberg calving within the area in the last four years. It happened roughly a decade after British Antarctic Survey scientists first found vast crack growth within the ice. The survey said that the calving is not believed to be associated with climate change.
Several scientists believe that rising air and sea temperatures due to climate change as well as the melting of surfaces are adding to greater ice loss. Such factors are believed to contribute to ice calving responsible for iceberg formation.
However, according to glaciologist Oliver Marsh from the survey, who has worked on the Brunt Ice Shelf for four seasons, none of these factors were apparently responsible for the recent break-off.
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An Expected Break-Off
Marsh explained that large iceberg calving is typically not a climate change indicator. The glaciologist adds that this recent calving was actually expected.
He explained that the break-off of the iceberg took place due to the ice shelf's movement to a fixed point over the seafloor. This is called the McDonald's Ice Rumples.
As time passed, this led to a bending stress on the ice to Halloween Crack's north. This saw an increase until it went beyond a critical value. Such a process is considered unusual.
According to Marsh, the break-off has reduced the ice shelf's total area to the smallest extent since the start of its monitoring.
He explained that tabular calving of icebergs is part of ice shelves' natural behavior, though it typically results in great changes in the geometry of the ice shelf. It may also affect the circulation of the local ocean.
Marsh added that their operational and science teams persist in real-time monitoring of the ice shelf to ensure its safety.
Environmental Impact
Peter Fretwell, who is also with the survey, said that the iceberg may also impact a penguin colony's safety within the area. He explains that the Halley Bay emperor penguin colony relocated recently to Halloween Crack's mouth.
Hence, the new iceberg's calving could seriously affect the sea ice stability, on which breeding of the penguins take place.
Fretwell explained that it is yet to be seen whether the sea ice, which is less stable, will stay intact long enough for the birds to nurture their young. Nevertheless, they will continue monitoring it via satellite until December, when the fledging of the young birds takes place.
Geography professor Adrian Luckman from Swansea University, who studies ice shelves in Antarctica, also said that it is quite concerning how there have been three iceberg calving that took place in the last four years.
He said that the floating ice shelves of Antarctica gradually grow by the flowing and shrinking of ice by iceberg calving. teh balance across the two processes may affect their ability to hold ice back on land.
Icebergs are among the several ice sheet loss forms that may contribute to the rise of sea levels. From 1992 to 2018, the ice that was lost in Greenland and Antarctica prompted sea level rises equivalent to seven-tenths of an inch.
Marsh noted that though the iceberg is massive, it is still quite small if considered in terms of Antarctica as a whole. Moreover, since it is floating already, it may not directly affect sea levels.
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