(ORDO NEWS) — A huge iceberg, almost the size of modern London, tore apart the Antarctic ice shelf near the research station. This is the second such split in two years, but is it worth sounding the alarm?
The British Antarctic Survey (BAS) has said that the formation of a new iceberg – in a natural process called “calving” – is not linked to climate change, which is accelerating the loss of sea ice in the Arctic and parts of Antarctica.
The iceberg, an area of 1550 square kilometers, separated from the Brant ice shelf just like a year ago a slightly smaller fragment – its area was 1270 square kilometers.
“This calving event was expected and is part of the natural behavior on the shelf. It is not related to climate change,” Bas Bas glaciologist Dominic Hodgson assured.
The British research station Halley VI monitors the state of the vast floating shelf on a daily basis, but does not depend on the latest break.
The mobile research base was relocated in the country for security reasons in 2016-2017 as cracks in the ice threatened its integrity.
Since then, employees have only worked on it during the Antarctic summer between November and March.
A 21-person team is now supporting food supplies and remote science experiments as the glacier is dark 24 hours a day in winter and temperatures drop below -50 degrees Celsius.
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