Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Iceberg eight times the size of Manhattan breaks off from Antarctica

ROUGH CUT (NO REPORTER NARRATION) NASA satellite images show a huge iceberg separating from the front of Antarctica's Pine Island Glacier. According to NASA, the iceberg is 21 miles (33 km) by 12 miles (19 km) -- eight times the size of Manhattan. Scientists have been studying Pine Island Glacier over the past two decades because it has been thinning quickly and may be one of the biggest reasons for sea level rise. The significance of this iceberg event is still to be determined, but icebergs are tracked for both scientific purposes and the danger they can pose to ships. The crack in the ice shelf was discovered by scientists in October 2011, and over the next two years the crack widened as the 200 feet (61 m) thick glacier traveled

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