Gigantic iceberg breaks off from Antarctic glacier

NASA Earth Observatory

Gigantic iceberg breaks off from Antarctic glacier
(Image credit: NASA Earth Observatory)

An iceberg six times the size of Manhattan is on the loose after breaking off of an Antarctic glacier.

The B31 iceberg covers close to 255 square miles and is up to one-third of a mile thick, making it one of the largest currently in existence, Reuters reports. It broke free from the Pine Island Glacier last November, according to NASA glaciologist Kelly Brunt.

"It's one that's large enough that it warrants monitoring," Brunt told Reuters. "It's like a large sheet cake floating through the Southern Ocean."

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The iceberg has made its way across Pine Island Bay, in the Amundsen Sea (between Antarctica and South America), and most likely will be swept up by the fast-moving currents of the Southern Ocean. Scientists are not concerned with the iceberg crashing into ships, as there's not a lot of traffic in the vicinity; what they are most interested in is the Pine Island Glacier itself, which has been "thinning and draining rapidly," and could be contributing to sea level rise. --Catherine Garcia

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Catherine Garcia

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.