Latest news with #A23a
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
NASA image reveals shocking transformation of world's largest iceberg: 'Thousands of ... pieces litter the ocean's surface'
A massive slab of ice that has been drifting through Antarctic waters is crumbling into smaller pieces, and it's happening just off the coast of a wildlife refuge. According to Live Science, the breakup of iceberg A23a, which is visible via satellite, could have damaging effects on fragile marine ecosystems. A23a is currently the largest iceberg in the world, with a surface area of about 1,200 square miles. Since breaking off Antarctica's mainland in 1986, A23a has made its way toward the territory of South Georgia, becoming stuck about 60 miles off its coast, according to Live Science. South Georgia's shallow waters and weather are chipping away at the iceberg. Earlier this month, NASA's Aqua satellite found multiple broken pieces in the sea, along with a surface area that has decreased "considerably" since the iceberg got stuck. According to NASA, "Thousands of iceberg pieces litter the ocean surface near the main berg, creating a scene reminiscent of a dark starry night." Ice shelves sometimes break off naturally, forming icebergs that can last decades. But the typical formation and breaking patterns of ice shelves have accelerated. According to glaciers have been shrinking each year for 37 years. Scientists and experts attribute much of this phenomenon to rising temperatures from human activities. Rising temperatures supercharge extreme weather, causing hurricanes and storms to be more powerful and dangerous. Stronger storms often lead to changing sea levels and ocean flow patterns. Warmer weather can also increase water temperature. Together, these forces create a perfect recipe for icebergs to break apart. Here's the problem with ice melt: Its impact doesn't usually stay local. When massive icebergs like A23a break apart and melt, sea levels around the world can rise. Higher seas cause higher tides that push water into coastal neighborhoods, flooding roads, damaging homes, and contaminating water supplies. The shift in ocean patterns and temperatures can also disrupt fisheries and agriculture, affecting food supplies that people around the world rely on. Other animals could feel the effects, too. A23a is breaking off near a wildlife refuge that's home to numerous species. According to Oceanwide Expeditions, South Georgia is home to the one of the largest global populations of king penguins. An iceberg and its broken pieces invading their space could disrupt their ability to reach feeding sites, per Dr. Andrew Meijers, an oceanographer at British Antarctic Survey. However, Meijers adds that as long as A23a stays where it currently is, penguin populations shouldn't be affected. The underlying cause of rapid ice melt is rising temperatures from human activities, such as driving gas-powered vehicles and using polluting energy sources like coal and oil. Scientists and policymakers are focusing on cutting down on these drivers through climate agreements, like the Paris Agreement, and promoting cleaner energy alternatives, like solar and wind energy. Scientists also use satellites to monitor icebergs, tracking their changes over time to understand their effects on sea levels, wildlife habitats, and communities. Individuals can explore critical climate issues to learn how everyday choices, from using energy-efficient appliances to choosing to walk instead of driving, can lead to a healthier planet and help slow the retreat of vulnerable ice shelves. Do you think America does a good job of protecting its natural beauty? Definitely Only in some areas No way I'm not sure Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
NDTV
21-05-2025
- Science
- NDTV
NASA Satellite Shows World's Largest Iceberg Breaking Into Thousands Of Pieces. What Happens Next
The world's largest iceberg, A23a, is breaking apart into smaller pieces, posing a threat to humans and the millions of penguins in the nearby Antarctic sanctuary. NASA's Aqua satellite, equipped with MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer), has captured striking images of the massive iceberg A23a breaking apart. The photos show thousands of smaller ice chunks detaching from the iceberg's northern edge, creating a hazardous icy landscape in the surrounding area. The image highlights the iceberg's enormous size, comparable to South Georgia Island (approximately 1400 square miles), which is famously known for Ernest Shackleton's rescue mission after the Endurance shipwreck. "Thousands of iceberg pieces litter the ocean surface near the main berg, creating a scene reminiscent of a dark, starry night," wrote representatives with the space agency, NASA wrote in a statement. The "megaberg" A23a, currently the world's largest iceberg, has a surface area of approximately 1,200 square miles. It calved from Antarctica's Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf in 1986 but remained trapped until 2023. After breaking free, it regained the title of largest iceberg in June 2023. A23a became stuck again in a vortex in early 2024 but broke free in December. It is now grounded off South Georgia Island, where it will likely remain until it melts or breaks apart in the "iceberg graveyard" of the Scotia Sea. As per NASA, the massive iceberg is breaking apart into smaller pieces through a process called "edge wasting." Although the new icebergs appear small compared to A23a, many are still around a kilometre across, posing a risk to ships. The largest piece to break off, dubbed A23c, measures approximately 50 square miles. Since getting stuck in March, A23a has shrunk by about 200 square miles. It's expected to take months or years for the iceberg to fully disintegrate. A23a's size lead is also narrowing, with another iceberg, D15A, closing in on its record. The Impact South Georgia Island is home to a diverse wildlife population, including seals, seabirds, and over 2 million penguins, but has a sparse human presence with only a few dozen researchers visiting annually. The massive iceberg A23a, currently grounded offshore, could potentially disrupt the ecosystem by forcing penguins to travel longer distances to find prey and altering the surrounding water temperature and salinity with its meltwater. Some of these fragments measure over half a mile wide and could therefore "pose a risk to ships," according to NASA. However, its relatively distant location from the coast may mitigate the impact. Some researchers suggest the melting iceberg could also have a positive effect by releasing nutrients into the ocean, benefiting the marine ecosystem. Scientists warn that similar events, such as massive iceberg break-offs, may become more frequent in the future because of climate change. This acceleration of ice shelf melting could have significant implications for global sea levels, ocean ecosystems and the planet's climate as a whole.
Newsweek
20-05-2025
- Science
- Newsweek
Satellite Photo Shows World's Largest Iceberg Breaking Into Thousands of Pieces
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The largest iceberg in the world has split off into thousands of smaller chunks after colliding with an Antarctic island. The A23a iceberg, which NASA had deemed the largest in the world since 2023, was seen losing large chunks of ice after drifting toward the island of South Georgia. The Context In December last year, A23a escaped from an ocean current vortex that had trapped it just to the north of the South Orkney Islands for months, rotating anticlockwise more or less on the spot at a rate of about 15 degrees every day. At the time, NASA predicted that it would float toward South Georgia. What To Know Half a year later, and NASA's prediction has proven correct; new images from NASA's Aqua satellite reveal the iceberg losing large chunks of ice off the South Georgia coast. According to estimates, the iceberg will now melt as a faster rate after losing much of its initial mass. In 1986, A23a initially broke off from the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf near the Antarctic Peninsula but almost immediately became grounded on the seafloor in the southern Weddell Sea. The iceberg remained there for over 30 years until it finally floated free in 2020, likely because of melting, and floated northward along the Antarctic Peninsula. Satellite images of the A23a iceberg splitting apart near South Georgia, on May 3, 2025. Satellite images of the A23a iceberg splitting apart near South Georgia, on May 3, 2025. NASA/Aqua Then, in the summer of 2024, A23a became trapped in a Taylor column, a rotating current, above a bump on the ocean floor called the Pirie Bank. At its largest, A23a was the size of Rhode Island, with an area of 1,700 square miles in November 2023. What People Are Saying NASA representatives described the waters around A23a in a statement on their website, saying: "Thousands of iceberg pieces litter the ocean surface near the main berg, creating a scene reminiscent of a dark starry night. Many measure at least a kilometer across and would pose a risk to ships." Jan Lieser, an ice specialist at the Antarctic Meteorological Service who has been tracking A23a on a NASA blog post, said in December: "I am not aware of an iceberg that has been trapped in such a persistent manner in such a small area. "My hypothesis is that a random perturbation in the system might have triggered a slight variation of the 'usual' spin, such that the iceberg found an exit path." What Happens Next NASA expects the iceberg to melt in the coming months as it loses more massand it could lose its status as the largest iceberg in the world by the end of the year.
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Watch the world's largest iceberg run aground near remote island in South Atlantic Ocean
Newly released satellite footage shows the world's largest iceberg running aground near a remote island in the South Atlantic Ocean last month. The timelapse video, published by Colorado State University's Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere, shows the iceberg, called A23a, becoming stuck in shallow waters about 90 kilometers (roughly 56 miles) off the southwestern coast of South Georgia Island over the course of March. Slightly smaller than Rhode Island, A23a originally split from Antarctica's Filchner Ice Shelf in 1986 and then remained grounded on the seabed in the Weddell Sea for over 30 years, according to the British Antarctic Survey. It began drifting in 2020 after gradually melting for years, and its migration was accelerated by currents and winds sweeping it north towards warmer air and waters, the BBC reported last year. British Antarctic Survey oceanographer Dr. Andrew Meijers remarked that the iceberg running aground wouldn't 'significantly affect' the millions of animals that reside on South Georgia Island. There are also no permanent human settlements on the island, so humans won't be affected either; however, there are two research stations at King Edward Point and on the nearby Bird Island that have peak summer populations of 44 and 10, respectively. 'If the iceberg stays grounded, we don't expect it to significantly affect the local wildlife of South Georgia…In the last few decades, the many icebergs that end up taking this route through the Southern Ocean soon break up, disperse and melt,' Dr. Meijers said. 'Commercial fisheries have been disrupted in the past however, and as the berg breaks into smaller pieces, this might make fishing operations in the area both more difficult and potentially hazardous.' 'Well above normal' temperatures expected for Southern California this week 'It will be interesting to see what will happen now, [because] from a scientific perspective we are keen to see how the iceberg will affect the local ecosystem,' he continued. 'Nutrients stirred up by the grounding and from its melt may boost food availability for the whole regional ecosystem, including for charismatic penguins and seals. We have several ongoing studies looking at exactly how 'megabergs' influence the ocean circulation, its chemistry, and the ecosystems they support.' As for whether or not A23a's history is linked to global warming, Dr. Meijers noted that iceberg activity is normal but increasing. 'Icebergs, including 'megabergs' like this one, are a completely normal part of the lifecycle of the Antarctic, and Greenland, ice sheets. They basically are pushed out into the ocean by the weight of continental ice behind, begin to float as ice shelves, and eventually break off as icebergs due to a combination of flexure by winds, waves, tides and ocean melting,' he explained. 'However, observations show that the ice shelves have lost around 6000 giga tonnes of their mass since the year 2000, which is roughly matched by an increase in straight up melt of the ice shelves and aligns with a measured mass loss of the grounded ice over Antarctica attributed to anthropogenic climate change.' South Georgia Island is a large body of land that is part of the British Overseas Territory of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Associated Press
14-03-2025
- Science
- Associated Press
World's biggest iceberg — a massive wall of ice named A23a
Video The trillion-ton slab of ice — called a megaberg — is currently aground near the South Georgia Island. A23a could affect the marine life on the island, including penguins and seals, as they use the area to breed and feed.
