Environmental News Network - Antarctic Iceberg on the Move

Details: By NASA Earth Observatory; 30.Jan

On January 22, 2023, the British Antarctic Survey reported that a new iceberg had broken from Antarctica’s Brunt Ice Shelf.

Cheryl Porter

On January 22, 2023, the British Antarctic Survey reported that a new iceberg had broken from Antarctica’s Brunt Ice Shelf. In the days following the long-awaited break, satellites have captured several new images of the behemoth berg as it drifts south.

Two days after the iceberg first broke off, NASA’s Terra satellite acquired a wide view of the region, which analysts at the U.S. National Ice Center (USNIC) used to confirm the break. Later, on January 25, 2023, the Operational Land Imager (OLI) on Landsat 8 acquired these detailed views.

The first image shows the iceberg drifting in the Weddell Sea. The berg, which USNIC named Iceberg A-81, measured about 1550 square kilometers (600 square miles)—about twice the area covered by New York City. The main berg is surrounded by smaller icebergs, sea ice, and a composite mix of ice types covered in snow called mélange.

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Antarctic Iceberg on the Move