Sentinel-2 captures Antarctica’s new iceberg

This image, captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission on 23 January, shows the 1550 sq km iceberg breaking away from the Brunt Ice Shelf. The new iceberg has been named/is expected to be called A81 with the smaller piece to the north likely identified as A81a.

Glaciologists have monitored the many cracks and chasms that have formed in the thick Brunt Ice Shelf, which borders the Coats Land coast in the Weddell Sea sector of Antarctica, for years. It was only a matter of time that Chasm 1, which had been dormant for decades, would meet with the Halloween Crack, first spotted on Halloween 2016.

The calving of ice bergs from an ice shelf has been observed to be followed by adjustment in the flow of ice into the ice shelf. If Brunt now experiences an acceleration, it could influence the behaviour of other cracks in the area. Copernicus Sentinels to closely monitor the behaviour and stability of the remaining Brunt Ice Shelf.

Routine monitoring from satellites offer unparalleled views of events happening in remote regions and show how ice shelves are actively responding to changes in ice dynamics, air and ocean temperatures.

Read full story: Giant iceberg breaks away from Antarctic ice shelf