In July of this year, one of the largest in the history of our planet iceberg A-68A is separated from of the Larsen ice sheet in Antarctica. It is difficult even to imagine a giant piece of ice with an area of over 6000 square kilometers, which is essentially 10% of the total area of the shelf. In the framework of its project on mapping of Antarctica IceBridge, the us space Agency NASA released an amazing photograph of the iceberg that we see.
During the annual project IceBridge, NASA experts are studying the ice shelves of the Arctic and Antarctic. The main goal of scientists is to understand the interactions between ice and oceans, and also trying to learn how to calculate thickness of glaciers in a particular place. In addition, researchers are also interested in the trajectory of the giant icebergs, occasionally chipped from the shelves, as happened with the A-68A.
“I was warned that I would see a giant iceberg, the size of the state of Delaware, and yet I was not ready for such a magnificent sight, when I first saw it from the air. A large part of the iceberg that I had seen before, was relatively small, and over the surface of the water sticking only their small part. In the case of A-68A sizes were so giant that it looks like a separate ice shelf” — shared her impressions the participant of the expedition Catherine Hanson.
We offer you to look at photos taken by NASA employees during their research mission, and to appreciate the impressive size of the iceberg.
#photo of the day | NASA published pictures of a giant iceberg separated from Antarctica
Sergey Grey