A massive rift in an Antarctic ice shelf is rapidly extending and
could create one of the largest icebergs ever within months, scientists
have warned.
The UK based Project Midas
which is monitoring the Larsen C ice shelf in West Antarctica has
warned that a rift on the shelf extended by 18km in the second half of
December 2016 and is "poised to calve".
"The
Larsen C Ice shelf in Antarctica is primed to shed an area of more than
5000 square km following further substantial rift growth," the team,
which is led by Professor Adrian Luckman, wrote on their website.
"Only a final 20km of ice now connects an iceberg one quarter the size of Wales to its parent ice shelf."
"When
it calves, the Larsen C Ice Shelf will lose more than 10 per cent of
its area to leave the ice front at its most retreated position ever
recorded; this event will fundamentally change the landscape of the
Antarctic Peninsula."
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=11778261
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