A chunk of ice the size of Manhattan has broken away from an Antarctic glacier and floated off into the ocean.
NASA has released new images of a huge iceberg “calving” from the Pine Island Glacier and floating off into the sea.
The moving image above shows the iceberg separating from the glacier and then sailing off into the bay, where it will ultimately melt.
NASA said its new satellite photos demonstrate the “fragility” of the Antarctic ice.
Pine Island is a spot where ice moves from the interior of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet to the open ocean, with about 19 cubic miles of ice dumped into the sea every year.
Scientists are worried this process is speeding up and fear it will add to rising sea levels.
Ian Howat, a glaciologist at Ohio State University, said the “event” was just one of many.
In July 2015, a huge iceberg broke away that was 10 times bigger than the current one, stretching to a size of 225 square miles.
“I think this event is the calving equivalent of an ‘aftershock’ following the much bigger event,” Howat said.
“Apparently, there are weaknesses in the ice shelf — just inland of the rift that caused the 2015 calving — that are resulting in these smaller breaks.”
This article originally appeared on The Sun.
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