The Delaware-sized iceberg that calved off the Larsen C Ice Shelf in Antarctica sometime between July 10 and July 12 is drifting farther from its former home, while breaking into smaller pieces, as reported by The Independent.
More importantly, new cracks are appearing in the ice shelf that could portend the creation of additional icebergs and the possible destabilisation of larger parts of the ice sheet, which holds back land-based ice from flowing into the sea and raising sea levels.
Satellite imagery from the Landsat 8 satellite as well as the the camera aboard the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Sentinel-1 satellite are helping scientists keep tabs on the gargantuan iceberg despite the shroud of darkness during the Antarctic winter season. Images released by Nasa and the ESA show the iceberg’s evolution and the beginnings of how the ice shelf is responding to losing such a large piece of itself.
