A huge berg almost the size of Los Angeles has violate off the Brunt Ice Shelf , which skirt the Antarctic sea-coast of Coats Land . The iceberg has been judge to measure 1,270 square kilometers ( 490.3 straightforward miles ) . Over the next weeks and months , research worker will see if it will move away from the southernmost continent or remain near the ice shelf .
The total Brunt Ice Shelf has been considered at hazard of major disruption - off for the last decade . Several chasm have formed over time , but a newfangled one – nicknamed the North Rift – started head towards another chasm back last November .
By January , the rift was moving at about one kilometer ( 0.6 miles ) per day through the 150 - meter ( 492 - foot ) thickset floating ice shelf . This was a clear indicant that a calving issue was imminent . It has now been confirmed .
“ Our teams at BAS have been prepared for the calving of an iceberg from Brunt Ice Shelf for years . We monitor the sparkler shelf daily using an automated internet of high - precision GPS instrument that circumvent the station , these measure how the sparkler shelf is deforming and move , ” Professor Dame Jane Francis , Director of British Antarctic Survey , said in astatement .
“ We also use artificial satellite images from ESA , NASA and the German satellite TerraSAR - X. All the datum are sent back to Cambridge for analytic thinking , so we know what ’s happening even in the south-polar winter , when there are no faculty on the station , it ’s pitch shot sinister , and the temperature fall below minus 50 degrees C ( or -58F ) . ”
Two previous cracks in the Brunt Ice Shelf known as " Chasm 1 " and " Halloween Crack " were a major business organization for the British Antarctic Survey . So much so that in 2016 , the Halley Research Station was relocated 32 kilometers ( 20 mile ) inland . The following year , the BAS resolve not to have faculty present there during the winter month , when evacuation would be unmanageable .
These two cracks have not grow for a while , but it is cleared how life-threatening these event can be when you could go from a crack to a immense iceberg in a matter of months .
“ This is a dynamic site . Four year ago we moved Halley Research Station inland to assure that it would not be carry away when an iceberg eventually formed . That was a fresh decision . Our chore now is to keep a nigh eye on the position and measure any likely impact of the present calving on the stay ice shelf . We incessantly review our contingency plans to ensure the guard of our faculty , protect our research station , and exert the pitch of the science we tackle at Halley , ” Simon Garrod , Director of Operations at British Antarctic Survey , explained .
