Giant iceberg on the loose
An iceberg roughly the size of Delaware broke away from Antarctica’s Larsen C Ice Shelf, permanently altering the landscape of the Antarctic Peninsula, Reuters .com reports. The iceberg spans roughly 2,200 square miles and weighs more than 1 trillion tons, making it one of the largest ever recorded. Larsen C, the fourth-largest ice shelf in Antarctica, is now 12 percent smaller. The phenomenon, known as calving, was not unexpected: For several years glaciologists had been monitoring the ice shelf for a growing rift, and the process had accelerated within the past year. In recent weeks the 120-mile crack, which had been running parallel to the Weddell Sea, turned toward the water and finally broke through the remaining few miles of ice.The iceberg, dubbed A68, was already floating before it calved, so there is no immediate impact on sea levels. Researchers point out, however, that Larsen C holds back the flow of glaciers into the ocean and warn that the event could trigger a chain reaction that would increase the flow of glacial melt, raising sea levels by up to 4 inches. Experts say further study is needed to gauge the extent to which climate change played a role in splitting off the iceberg, but in any case the future stability of Larsen C is now at risk. “In the ensuing months and years,” says glaciologist Adrian Luckman, “the ice shelf could either gradually regrow or suffer further calving events, which may eventually lead to collapse.”