Iceberg A-68

Iceberg A-68 was a giant tabular iceberg adrift in the South Atlantic, having calved from Antarctica's Larsen C ice shelf in July 2017. By 16 April 2021, no significant fragments remained.

With a surface area of 5,800 square kilometres (2,200 mi2), twice the size of Luxembourg, over a quarter the size of Wales, and larger than Delaware, it was one of the largest recorded icebergs, the largest being B-15 which measured 11,000 square kilometres (4,200 mi2) before breaking up. The calving of A-68 reduced the overall size of the Larsen C shelf by 12 percent.

Historical data shows that many icebergs that break off from the Antarctic Peninsula reach South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.

The name "A-68" was assigned by the US National Ice Center. It broke into parts with the mother berg dubbed A-68A. The larger child icebergs were designated in order of birthing, as A-68B, A-68C, A-68D, A-68E, A-68F, and in January 2021, splitting almost in half to birth A-68G. On 30 January 2021, Iceberg A-68A broke into other icebergs called A-68H, A-68I, A-68J, A-68K, A-68L, A-68M.

History and recent developments

A-68 was part of Larsen C, a section of the Larsen Ice Shelf. Scientists found the crack beginning to form in November 2016. Scientists assess that A-68 "didn't just break through in one clean shot, [but] it formed a lace-network of cracks first." The resulting iceberg was around 175 km (574,000 ft) long and 50 km (160,000 ft) wide, 5,800 km2 (2,200 mi2) in area, 200 m (660 ft) thick and weighed an estimated one trillion tonnes.

Satellite images from the ESA and EU's Copernicus Program show that as the iceberg moved, it was gradually shrinking and splintering, forming more icebergs in the process.