Solar Energy News
ICE WORLD
Mega-iceberg drifts towards Antarctic penguin island
Mega-iceberg drifts towards Antarctic penguin island
By Nick Perry
Paris (AFP) Jan 28, 2025

The world's biggest iceberg -- more than twice the size of London -- could drift towards a remote island where a scientist warns it risks disrupting feeding for baby penguins and seals.

The gigantic wall of ice is moving slowly from Antarctica on a potential collision course with South Georgia, a crucial wildlife breeding ground in the South Atlantic.

Satellite imagery suggested that unlike previous "megabergs" this rogue was not crumbling into smaller chunks as it plodded through the Southern Ocean, Andrew Meijers, a physical oceanographer at the British Antarctic Survey, told AFP on Friday.

He said predicting its exact course was difficult but prevailing currents suggested the colossus would reach the shallow continental shelf around South Georgia in two to four weeks.

But what might happen next is anyone's guess, he said.

It could avoid the shelf and get carried into open water beyond South Georgia, a British overseas territory some 1,400 kilometres (870 miles) east of the Falkland Islands.

Or it could strike the sloping bottom and get stuck for months or break up into pieces.

Meijers said this scenario could seriously impede seals and penguins trying to feed and raise their young on the island.

"Icebergs have grounded there in the past and that has caused significant mortality to penguin chicks and seal pups," he said.

- 'White wall' -

Roughly 3,500 square kilometres (1,350 square miles) across, the world's biggest and oldest iceberg, known as A23a, calved from the Antarctic shelf in 1986.

It remained stuck for over 30 years before finally breaking free in 2020, its lumbering journey north sometimes delayed by ocean forces that kept it spinning in place.

Meijers -- who encountered the iceberg face to face while leading a scientific mission in late 2023 -- described "a huge white cliff, 40 or 50 metres high, that stretches from horizon to horizon".

"It's just like this white wall. It's very sort of Game of Thrones-esque, actually," he said, referring to the dark fantasy series.

A23a has followed roughly the same path as previous massive icebergs, passing the east side of the Antarctica Peninsula through the Weddell Sea along a route called "iceberg alley".

Weighing a little under a trillion tonnes, this monster block of freshwater was being whisked along by the world's most powerful ocean "jet stream" -- the Antarctic Circumpolar Current.

Raul Cordero from Chile's University of Santiago, who is also part of the National Antarctic Research Committee, said he was confident the iceberg would sidestep South Georgia.

"The island acts as an obstacle for ocean currents and therefore usually diverts the water long before it reaches the island," he said.

"The iceberg is moved by that water flow, so the chances of it hitting are not that high," though chunks could, he said.

Another scientist, glaciologist Soledad Tiranti currently on an Argentinian exploration voyage in the Antarctic, said that icebergs such as A23a "are so deep that before reaching an island or mainland they generally get stuck" on the seabed.

- Icy obstacle -

It is summer in South Georgia and resident penguins and seals along its southern coastline are foraging in the frosty waters to bring back food to fatten their young.

"If the iceberg parks there, it'll either block physically where they feed from, or they'll have to go around it," said Meijers.

"That burns a huge amount of extra energy for them, so that's less energy for the pups and chicks, which causes increased mortality."

The seal and penguin populations on South Georgia have already been having a "bad season" with an outbreak of bird flu "and that (iceberg) would make it significantly worse," he said.

As A23a ultimately melted it could seed the water with nutrients that encourage phytoplankton growth, feeding whales and other species, and allowing scientists to study how such blooms absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

While icebergs are natural phenomena, Meijers said the rate at which they were being lost from Antarctica was increasing, likely due to human induced climate change.

Related Links
Beyond the Ice Age

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters
Tweet

RELATED CONTENT
The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.
ICE WORLD
Mega-iceberg drifts towards Antarctic penguin island
Paris (AFP) Jan 24, 2025
The world's biggest iceberg - more than twice the size of London - could drift towards a remote island where a scientist warns it risks disrupting feeding for baby penguins and seals. The gigantic wall of ice is moving slowly from Antarctica on a potential collision course with South Georgia, a crucial wildlife breeding ground in the South Atlantic. Satellite imagery suggested that unlike previous "megabergs" this rogue was not crumbling into smaller chunks as it plodded through the Southern O ... read more

ICE WORLD
Chemical looping turns environmental waste into fuel

For clean ammonia, MIT engineers propose going underground

From lab to field: CABBI pipeline delivers oil-rich sorghum

Breakthrough process converts CO2 and electricity into protein-rich food

ICE WORLD
UK's first AI classroom without teachers sparks debate

Expanding robot perception

With China's DeepSeek, US tech fears red threat

OpenAI says Chinese firms try to copy US AI tech

ICE WORLD
New Study Enhances Trust in Wind Power Forecasting with Explainable AI

Trump casts chill over US wind energy sector

US falling behind on wind power, think tank warns

Flinders University advances vertical wind turbine design

ICE WORLD
GM reports loss on China hit, projects higher 2025 profits

Electric vehicles now match traditional cars for longevity

Tesla, BMW take EU to court over China EV tariffs

Dutch researchers employ unique e-bike to make cycling safer

ICE WORLD
Chinese artificial sun achieves record-setting milestone towards fusion power generation

A platform to expedite clean energy projects

How to recycle CO2 from flue gases

New material reveals unconventional superconductivity hallmark

ICE WORLD
US utilities collaborate to accelerate GE Vernova's BWRX-300 deployment

GE Hitachi selects BWXT to manufacture reactor pressure vessel for BWRX-300

SMRs and Advanced Nuclear Reactors in 2025: Adapting to New Energy Demands

Mongolia signs landmark mining deal with French nuclear giant

ICE WORLD
Climate activists defend 'future generations', appeal lawyer says

DeepSeek breakthrough raises AI energy questions

EU sends power generators to Ireland after Storm Eowyn

COP30 chief praises China's 'extraordinary' climate progress

ICE WORLD
Hidden 'Highways' Allow Species to Travel Between Brazil's Rainforests

Benin enlists voodoo to protect its precious mangroves

WWF blasts Sweden, Finland over logging practices

One-third of Arctic-boreal region is now a source

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.