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Where is it?Scotia Sea , South Atlantic Ocean [ -54.4957805 , -37.7561759 ]
What ’s in the photo?Iceberg A23a , which is beginning to erupt asunder alongside South Georgia island
Thousands of tiny icebergs have calved off the world’s largest iceberg, A23a, since it grounded off the coast of South Georgia island in March.
Which satellite took the photo?NASA ’s Aqua planet
When was it taken?May 3 , 2025
A striking new satellite photo has divulge that the world ’s largest berg is start to break aside into thousands of small pieces as it remains stuck alongside a wildlife refuge inAntarctica . But it could take months , if not years , for the entire slab to evaporate .
Smaller icebergs have been calving off A23a for months. This photo was taken in January 2025, as the megaberg was making its final approach toward South Georgia.
The " megaberg , " dubbed A23a , presently has a surface area of around 1,200 square miles ( 3,100 straightforward kilometers ) — more or less the sizing of Long Island . It first calved off of the Filchner - Ronne Ice Shelf in 1986 , but it became immobilize when its underside caught on the seafloor . It remained stranded until January 2023 , when itfinally began to move aside from mainland Antarctica . During this time , it has repeatedly held the statute title of " world ’s largest iceberg " as with child bergs have occur and gone , most recentlyregaining the championship in June 2023 .
The elephantine berg became pin down again in early 2024 after gettingcaught in a with child ocean maelstrom . It stay spin on the spot for several months before finally break loose in December 2024 and resuming its journeying north through theDrake Passage — also known as the " iceberg burying ground , " where large Antarctic icebergsget embroil aside to their eventual doomsday .
But in January , it became clean that A23a wason a collision course with South Georgiain the Scotia Sea . By March , the megaberg came to a haltas it grounded on the seaflooraround 60 miles ( 100 kilometer ) off the island ’s southwest coast , where it became trap for the third — and probably net — time in its lengthy lifespan .
South Georgia is home to millions of penguins, including one of the largest colonies of king penguins (Aptenodytes patagonicus) in the world.
Now , photos fromNASA ’s Aqua orbiter have revealed that the edges of A23a are start to disintegrate , especially along its northern edge , blanketing the surrounding area with frigid debris , according toNASA ’s Earth Observatory . " one thousand of iceberg slice bedding material the ocean surface near the principal berg , creating a view reminiscent of a dark starry night , " NASA representatives write .
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The numerous unexampled icebergs appear extremely pocket-size equate with A23a . However , " many meter at least a kilometer across and would model a peril to ships , " NASA representatives wrote . The largest composition to break off from the megaberg , which has been nickname A23c , has an country of around 50 square mile ( 130 square km ) and is currently rove south ( just out of the artificial satellite picture ) .
This type of iceberg radioactive decay is known as " edge wasting away " and has shrunk A23a by around 200 straight miles ( 520 square km ) since it became stuck in March , accord to NASA . At this rate , it will probably take several months , if not years , for the berg to fully die aside , assuming larger cracks do not pull it aside first .
However , A23a may not hold its sizing statute title for retentive , because as of May 16 , it is only around 12 square miles ( 31 straight km ) with child than the next - bounteous iceberg , D15A , according to theU.S. National Ice Center .
Wildlife refuge
South Georgia is not populate by masses , away from a few dozen researchers who visit throughout the year . However , it is home to an abundance of wildlife , such as seals and seabirds , including more than 2 million penguins , allot toBirdLife International .
take a large iceberg berth just offshore can be problematic for these metal money , peculiarly for penguin that may have to travel several hundred extra miles around the obstruction to reach their quarry , depending on where the iceberg is locate . Meltwater coming from trapped bergs can alsoalter the temperature and salinity of their surroundings .
It is currently unclear how much of an impact A23a is having on the local wildlife . However , the iceberg is quite far off the coast , meaning it will be less turbulent than it could have been . Some researchers have exact the thawing slab could profit the marine ecosystem by releasing nutrients into the sea .
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This is not the first time that South Georgia has been put under military blockade by gargantuan icebergs . In 2020 , one of the mankind ’s previous largest iceberg , A68 , became stuck even closer to the island , sparking fears that itcould disrupt penguin colonies . However , unlike A23a , it quicklybroke up into dozens of ample chunksafter sea currentsripped it in half , make itto promptly melt awayand thus forefend cataclysm .
As human - causedclimate changecontinues to causeincreased melting of Antarctica ’s ice sheets , many more hefty bergs could soon pass by South Georgia in the come tenner .
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