A81 is expected to follow in the footsteps of previous icebergs swept by the strong Antarctic Coastal Current westwards. High precision GPS instruments as well as satellite data have been used to monitor widening of the chasm and in 2016 BAS took the precaution of moving the Halley Research Station inland to protect it."Īfter breaking from the ice shelf, the iceberg has spun around and is heading south. Since glaciologists first observed Chasm-1 widening in 2012, BAS science and operations teams have been anticipating the calving event. ![]() BAS has been monitoring the Brunt Ice Shelf and the chasms formed across it for over a decade. He says, "This was a calving we knew was coming. Oliver Marsh studies the Brunt Ice Shelf and has just returned from Halley Research Station. This calving is a natural process along the Antarctic coastline with A81 the second major iceberg from the region in two years. Monitoring by BAS glaciologists shows that the research station area currently remains largely unaffected by the calving event. The Brunt Ice Shelf is one of the most closely monitored ice shelves on the planet and is home to the BAS Halley Research Station. It is now floating approximately 150km away from its origin. ![]() ![]() The images show the dynamic nature of the iceberg surrounded by smaller icebergs which also broke away.Ī81 broke free when a large crack in the ice, called Chasm-1, extended across the entire ice shelf. As the summer team departed the nearby BAS Halley Research Station they witnessed from the air the start of the iceberg's journey into the Weddell Sea.
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