A trillion tonne iceberg just broke off Antarctica
One of the largest ever recorded icebergs has broken off from Larsen C ice shelf in Antarctica.
With an estimated area of around 5,800 square km and a weight of more than a trillion tonnes, it is one of the largest icebergs ever recorded.
Scientists have been monitoring the crack in the Larsen C ice shelf for almost a decade so it was no surprise the iceberg finally broke off.
“The iceberg is one of the largest recorded and its future progress is difficult to predict,” said Adrian Luckman, professor at Swansea University and lead investigator of Project MIDAS, which has been monitoring the ice shelf for years.
“It may remain in one piece but is more likely to break into fragments. Some of the ice may remain in the area for decades, while parts of the iceberg may drift north into warmer waters,” he added.
The giant iceberg is now a hazard for ships around the continent. The iceberg has also left the Larsen C ice shelf reduced in area by more than 12 per cent.
Dr Martin O’Leary, a Swansea University glaciologist and member of the MIDAS project team, said:
“Although this is a natural event, and we’re not aware of any link to human-induced climate change, this puts the ice shelf in a very vulnerable position. This is the furthest back that the ice front has been in recorded history. We’re going to be watching very carefully for signs that the rest of the shelf is becoming unstable.”
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