The World’s Largest Iceberg Ran Aground Near A Remote Island In Antarctica, Which Might Benefit The Wildlife There
After months of drifting through the ocean, the world’s largest iceberg has finally run aground near a remote island in Antarctica.
The iceberg is known as A23a, and it had briefly raised concerns since it was on a collision course with South Georgia Island in the South Atlantic, which is home to seals and penguins.
Now, scientists have announced that the potential crisis may have been averted so far, and A23a could actually be beneficial to the wildlife in the area.
According to the British Antarctic Survey, nutrients from the iceberg’s melt could make more food available for the regional ecosystem.
“This isn’t just water like we drink. It’s full of nutrients and chemicals, as well as tiny animals like phytoplankton frozen inside,” said Laura Taylor, a researcher with the British Antarctic Survey.
It has taken decades for A23a to reach its current destination. In 1986, it broke apart from Antarctica’s Filcher-Ronne Ice Shelf. For 34 years, it stayed in the Weddell Sea, grounded off the coast of West Antarctica.
But in 2020, it began moving again, floating along with the ocean currents until it got stuck in a rotating column of water for months in 2024.
Once it escaped from the vortex, experts became worried that the giant iceberg was headed straight toward South Georgia Island, a breeding ground for seals and penguins.
If it had hit the island or stopped in shallow water near its shores, the iceberg could have interfered with the animals’ ability to take care of their young by obstructing routes to feeding areas so that they would be forced to swim farther.
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As of right now, A23a is grounded about 50 miles from the island’s shores. As long as it stays in its current location, it is no longer expected to cause serious harm to animals.
The iceberg weighs 1.1 trillion tons and is roughly the size of Rhode Island. It might still affect the fishing industry, though. Other icebergs have disrupted commercial fisheries before.
“As the berg breaks into smaller pieces, this might make fishing operations in the area both more difficult and potentially hazardous,” said Andrew Meijers, an oceanographer with the British Antarctic Survey.
“Now it’s grounded, it is even more likely to break up due to the increased stresses, but this is practically impossible to predict. Large bergs have made it a long way north before—one got within 1,000 kilometers [621 miles] of Perth, Australia, once—but they all inevitably break up and melt quickly after.”
Icebergs such as A23a develop as part of the natural life cycle of ice sheets. However, climate change has led to the loss of 6,000 billion tons of mass from ice shelves in the last 25 years.
Icebergs are now breaking from Antarctica at a faster rate than snowfall is adding to it. Sea levels will rise as glaciers continue to lose ice, which has significant implications for ocean health.
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