The world’s largest iceberg is moving closer to a remote UK island. It is feared that it will collide with the island, endangering animals such as penguins and seals that roam the area.
The iceberg is steadily moving north from Antarctica towards the UK remote area of South Georgia. The region is also known as a haven for wild animals. The iceberg is now located 173 miles (280 km) from South Georgia. It is feared that the iceberg may break into pieces after colliding with the island.
In the past, large icebergs have killed countless birds and seals that roam South Georgia’s ice-covered beaches and creeks. The way to collect food was blocked and they died.
“Icebergs are inherently dangerous,” Simon Wallace, captain of the South Georgia government-run ship Fars, told BBC News. If it wasn’t there at all, I would be very happy.’
Teams of scientists, sailors and fishermen from around the world are monitoring the daily condition of the iceberg. They are keeping an eye on it by verifying the images captured in the satellite.
The giant iceberg is known as A23A. It is also one of the oldest glaciers in the world. In 1986, the iceberg broke off from the Filchner Ice Shelf in Antarctica and became stuck on the sea floor. Later it got caught in a sea vortex again. The iceberg finally broke free of the ocean gyre last December and headed toward South Georgia.
The warm waters on the north side of Antarctica are weakening and melting the high peaks of the iceberg. They can be up to 1,212 feet (5 meters) high; The height is higher than the tallest building in the UK.
At one time the size of the iceberg was 5,8 square kilometers. The recent picture captured on the satellite showed that it was slowly eroding. At present, its size has decreased by about 3,000 square kilometers, which is equal to the Cornwall County in England.
In the meantime, the big ice from the edge of the iceberg has started to break into the water. Any day the whole glacier can be broken into large parts. This can create a situation like the ice cities that are uncontrollable around South Georgia.
This is not the first to be threatened by the South Georgia and the Sandwich Islands due to the big iceberg; Such a situation was also caused by the push of a glacier island called A3 in the 21st. Due to the huge pieces of ice, the food collection is closed and many penguins and seals on the beach died.
The region is an important habitat for King Mopor Penguin. The habitat of many elephants and wool seals is also here.
Maritime researcher Mark Belchia gives the South Georgia government intellect. He told the BBC that South Georgia was located in Iceberg Alley. Therefore, fisheries and wild animals – it is likely to have an impact on it (hemisphere) and both have great ability to adapt to environmental changes.
The ship’s sailors and fishermen say the icebergs are constantly becoming a problem. In 2021, they were terrified of approaching a frost called A3.
Mark Belchier also saw the iceberg while traveling to the sea. “The fragments were upward,” he said. Seeing these seemed to be a big ice tower. And looking at the landscape, it seemed like a city of ice. ‘
Unable to adapt to warming ocean waters and rising air temperatures, Antarctica has become more unstable than ever. More glaciers are expected to break off in the future.
A team from the British Antarctic Survey, the UK’s national polar survey agency, approached the A23A iceberg in 2023 aboard the research vessel Sir David Attenborough. Scientists were eager to seize the rare opportunity to investigate the effects of large glaciers on the environment.
PhD researcher Laura Taylor collected water samples 400 meters away from the glacier. He has researched the effect of melting glacier water on the carbon cycle in the ocean. He said, ‘The water we drink is not like that. They are full of nutrients and chemicals. Besides, small animals like phytoplankton are frozen inside it.
When the glacier melts, its various components mix with the water. It can store more carbon in the deep ocean. And some of the earth’s carbon dioxide is naturally trapped in it.