NATURAL EVENTS

A huge iceberg broke off in Antarctica, the size of "Greater London"

On Sunday, January 22, between 19.00 and 20.00 local time a huge iceberg (1550 km²), almost as large as the "Greater London" (1,569 km²), broke away from the ice shelf Brunt 150 m thick.

The huge iceberg broke away from the Antarctic sea ice during a high spring tide.

The iceberg broke off when the crack known as Chasm-1 extended completely across the ice shelf.

Two years ago, an almost identical iceberg had already formed in the same area, called Brunt Barrier.

photo British Antarctic Survey (Bas)
We are in Antarctica
On Sunday, January 22, between 19.00 and 20.00 local time a huge iceberg (1550 km²), almost as large as the "Greater London" (1,569 km²), broke away from the ice shelf Brunt 150 m thick.
photo British Antarctic Survey (Bas)
It's not climate change to blame
The huge iceberg broke away from the Antarctic sea ice during a high spring tide of such magnitude that it widened an existing crack on the ice. This was reported by scientists at the Halley VIstation. This phenomenon is not due to climate change, although the region is threatened by global warming, according to the British Antarctic Survey (BAS).
photo British Antarctic Survey (Bas)
The area was already under observation
The iceberg broke apart when the crack known as Chasm-1 fully extended across the ice shelf. The rupture is the second major event in this area in the last two years and took place a decade after scientists at British Antarctic Survey (BAS) first detected the growth of vast cracks in the ice.
photo British Antarctic Survey (Bas)
The Halley VI station
The Halley VI research station is a platform of international importance for atmospheric and space meteorological observation, in a climate-sensitive area. The Halley VI research station has remained uninhabited for the past six winters due to the complex and unpredictable glaciological situation.
photo British Antarctic Survey (Bas)
It had already happened in 2021
Two years ago, an almost identical iceberg had already formed in the same area, called Brunt Barrier, on which the British research station Halley VIis located. The iceberg called A-76 measures 170 kilometers long, 25 kilometers wide and has a total area of 4,320 square kilometers. At that time it was compared in size to the island of Mallorca. This floating ice shelf flows at a speed of up to 2 km per year west towards the Sea of Weddell.
photo Ansa
New images
Meanwhile, new images of the iceberg that broke off from the Antarctic Bruntice shelf on January 22 come from the eyes of European satellites Sentinel Copernicus, the Earth observation program managed by the European Commission and the European Space Agency (ESA).
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19/04/2024
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