Another Iceberg Calves in Antarctica

The National Ice Center reports that another new iceberg has broken away from Antarctica. An iceberg the size of St. Lucia Island in the Caribbean Sea broke off from the Lazarev Ice Shelf, a large sheet of glacial ice and snow extending from the Antarctic mainland into the southeastern Weddell Sea.

The new iceberg, D-17, is 34.5 miles long and 6.9 miles wide. It was observed on an image collected by the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program. Icebergs are named for the area quadrant of Antarctica where they appear. D-17 is the 17th berg reported since record keeping began in 1976.

Last week, an iceberg called C-19, which is as large as the Chesapeake Bay broke away from Antarctica, where it is late summer. In March, another giant berg called B-22 broke free in a nearby area. It measured 2,120 square miles, bigger than the state of Delaware. Also in March, a large floating ice shelf in Antarctica collapsed.

However, new flow measurements for the Ross ice streams indicate some of their movement has slowed or halted, allowing the ice to thicken. This reverses earlier estimates that the sheet was melting. Researchers don’t know if the thickening is a short-term change or represents a reversal of the ice’s long retreat.

See story ?Another Huge Iceberg Calves in Antarctica?, click here.

NOTE: This news story, previously published on our old site, will have any links removed.