A huge iceberg broke off in Antarctica: it is larger than Kiev – map, photo, video

In Antarctica, a giant iceberg broke away, the area of ​​which is larger than the area of ​​Kiev. This was reported by the press center of the British Antarctic Service (BAS).

As noted, the iceberg broke away from the Brunt Ice Shelf (150 m thick), where the British research station Halley is located. About nine years ago, scientists discovered the growth of massive ones on the glacier, and in November 2020 they saw the first signs of the inevitability of a split.

See also: The world’s largest iceberg split and turned into an “ice soup” – satellite photo

In January 2021, the North Rift crack (North Rift on the map) cut through the ice at a speed of up to 1 km per day, and on February 26, a giant iceberg broke away from the glacier, writes BAS. The area of ​​the iceberg was 1270 km2, for comparison, the area of ​​Kiev is about 840 km2.

Click on the map to enlarge

As noted, British scientists monitored the cracks daily and took precautions. In 2016, Halley station was moved 32 km inland so that in the event of a breakaway it would not be carried away along with the iceberg. And since 2017, researchers have been working at the station only during the summer periods, since in winter, in the event of an emergency, evacuation would be difficult.

“Our task now is to closely monitor the situation and assess the possible impact of the current iceberg branch on the remaining ice shelf. We are constantly reviewing our contingency plans to ensure the safety of our staff, protect our research station and ensure the provision of scientific data that we’re doing at Halley, “said Professor Dame Jane Francis, Director of the British Antarctic Survey.