A huge iceberg, the size of the UK county of Bedfordshire, has broken off the Brunt Ice Shelf.
The phenomenon is known as calving and comes almost a decade after scientists at the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) first detected the growth of vast cracks in the ice.
The first indication that a calving event was imminent came in November 2020 when a new chasm – named North Rift – headed towards another large chasm near the Stancomb-Wills Glacier Tongue 35 km (21.7 miles) away.
It's the third major crack in the ice shelf that's become active in the last ten years.
During January, the rift pushed northeast at up to 1 km(0.62 miles) per day, cutting through the 150 meters (492 feet) thick floating ice shelf.
The iceberg was formed when the crack widened several hundred meters in a few hours on the morning of 26th February, finally breaking free from the rest of the floating ice shelf.
The calving is not expected to pose a threat to BAS's Halley Research Station which is located on the Brunt ice shelf.
