SearchJust this week, an enormous rectangle of ice broke away from an ice shelf in Antarctica and floated away. The process is called calving.
Scientists call the iceberg A-76. The European Space Agency first reported the calving as it was spotted by two orbiting satellites. They were also able to confirm the size to be 106 miles (175 km) long and 15 miles (25 km) wide and with an area of 1668 square miles (4320 sq km). That’s approximately four times the size of New York City.
This enormous iceberg will now float in the Weddell Sea. The waters in this part of Antarctica are not warmed by climate change and because the iceberg will float, scientists believe it will not cause sea level rise. According to glaciologists with the British Antarctic Survey, this event is part of the natural cycle, and the iceberg is expected to eventually break into two or three pieces.
