Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Palestinian media: Israeli occupation forces storm the Old City in the center of Nablus, occupied West Bank
Local sources to Al Mayadeen: Sudanese army forces drones strike town of Kabkabiya, North Darfur.
Syrian Observatory: The plane is loaded with air defense systems and heavy weapons as part of US troop reinforcements to its bases in northeastern Syria
Syrian Observatory: US cargo plane lands with two military helicopters at Kharab al-Jir base in the countryside of Rmeilan, north of Hasakah
Miguel Díaz-Canel to Gustavo Petro: US seeks to reimpose the Monroe Doctrine in its relations with sovereign states in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The Abu Ali Mustapha Brigades, the military wing of the PFLP, says they handed over the body of an Israeli captive to the Israeli occupation forces in implementation of the clauses of the ceasefire agreement.
Al Mayadeen correspondent: Israeli drones are flying over the presidential palace in Baabda, Mount Lebanon, and over the skies of the capital, Beirut, and its suburbs.
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in South Lebanon: Israeli warplanes launch a series of raids on the al-Mahmoudiya and Jarmaq areas
Trump reiterates proposal for Russia and Ukraine to stop at current front line, negotiate later
Reuters: Trump says no discussion regarding Ukraine ceding Donbas to Russia

Giant iceberg released 152 billion tonnes of freshwater into the sea

  • By Al Mayadeen Net
  • Source: Agencies
  • 21 Jan 2022 20:32
  • 1 Shares
3 Min Read

A published study reveals that a giant iceberg that detached from Antarctica in 2017 released an estimated total of 152 billion tonnes of nutrient-rich freshwater into the sea.

  • x
  • released an estimated total of 152 billion tonnes of nutrient-rich freshwater into the sea. 
    Dubbed A-68, the iceberg released an estimated total of 152 billion tonnes of nutrient-rich freshwater into the sea. 

A giant iceberg that detached from Antarctica in 2017 released the equivalent of 61 million Olympic-sized swimming pools of freshwater as it melted, according to research published Thursday, raising questions over the impact on the marine ecosystem.

The monstrous iceberg was twice the size of Luxembourg when it separated from the Larsen ice shelf, which has warmed faster than any other part of Earth's southernmost continent.

At 5,719 square kilometers (2,200 square miles) it was the biggest iceberg on Earth when it formed and the sixth-largest on record, according to the British Antarctic Survey. 

Floating danger

For two years, the trillion-tonne giant known as A-68, floated in the cold waters of the Weddell Sea before traveling northwards and threatening the British island of South Georgia, some 4,000 kilometers (2,500 miles) from its starting point. 

The iceberg came dangerously close to the island in late 2020, raising fears that it would become stuck on the seabed, block ocean currents and obstruct the passage of thousands of penguins and seals. 

Related News

World's largest iceberg runs aground off heavily inhabited island

But the new study found that the iceberg melted quickly once in the warmer region around South Georgia and had already lost a significant amount of its bulk by the time it reached shallower waters. 

152 billion tonnes of nutrient-rich freshwater

Researchers who tracked its journey via satellites calculated that from late 2020 until it melted away in 2021, A-68 released an estimated total of 152 billion tonnes of nutrient-rich freshwater into the sea. 

"The next thing we want to learn is whether it had a positive or negative impact on the ecosystem" around South Georgia, said Anne Braakmann-Folgmann, a researcher at the Center for Polar Observation and Modelling (CPOM), who led the research published in the journal Remote Sensing of Environment. 

Redrawing planet's coastlines

Icebergs form when chunks of ice break off from ice shelves or glaciers and begin to float in open water. 

Their formation is part of a natural process, which can be accelerated by warming air and ocean temperatures due to human-caused climate change.

Earth's average surface temperature has gone up by one degree Celsius since the 19th century, enough to increase the intensity of droughts, heatwaves, and tropical cyclones. 

But the air over Antarctica has warmed more than twice that much.

Ice sheets atop Greenland and West Antarctic hold enough frozen water to lift oceans a dozen meters (40 feet), drowning cities and redrawing the planet's coastlines.

Read more: The world is on the verge of irreversible climate consequences

  • Iceberg
  • Britain
  • Climate change
  • Greenland
  • Antarctic
  • South Georgia
STOP THE HEAT: A Climate Change Coverage

STOP THE HEAT: A Climate Change Coverage

Most Read

Iran strikes secret Israeli-US bunker under Tel Aviv high-rise

Tel Aviv high-rise struck by Iran hid Site 81, secret US-Israeli base

  • Politics
  • 14 Oct 2025
Yemeni Armed Forces Chief of Staff Major General Mohammad Abd al-Karim al-Ghamari , during a ceremony in an undisclosed locations in Yemen, undate (Yemeni Military Media)

Yemeni Armed Forces mourn martyred Chief of Staff al-Ghamari

  • Politics
  • 16 Oct 2025
Israeli occupation violates Gaza ceasefire, killing seven Palestinians.

Israeli occupation violates Gaza ceasefire, kills seven Palestinians

  • Politics
  • 14 Oct 2025
Zionists Fundamentally Misread Iran Due To Their Own Echo Chambers

Zionists fundamentally misread Iran due to their own echo chambers

  • Analysis
  • 15 Oct 2025

Coverage

All
War on Gaza

Read Next

All
UK blocks release of documents on secretive Lammy-Sa’ar meeting.
Politics

UK blocks release of documents on secret Lammy-Sa’ar meeting

Colombia slams Trump’s drug accusation, defends sovereignty
Politics

Colombia slams Trump’s incendiary drug claims, defends sovereignty

The abuse was detailed in Giuffre's memoir "Nobody's Girl: A Memoir of Surviving Abuse and Fighting for Justice." (AP)
Politics

Epstein victim recounts choking, sexual assault by 'well-known PM'

The US Secret Service discovered a hunting stand near the airport President Donald Trump uses in Florida. (US Secret Service)
Politics

FBI probes hunting stand with sightline to Trump’s Air Force One exit

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS