World’s largest iceberg breaks off Antarctica

The world’s largest iceberg has broken off from an ice shelf in Antarctica.

According to the European Space Agency, the huge iceberg called A-76 and roughly the shape of Manhattan but more than 70 times bigger; is floating through the Weddell Sea.

The iceberg is around 170 kilometers (105 miles) long and 25 kilometers wide, with an area of 4,320 square kilometers, slightly larger than the Spanish island of Majorca.

According to the report, the iceberg which broke off the western side of the Ronne Ice Shelf was originally spotted by the British Antarctic Survey and confirmed using images from the Copernicus satellite.

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The world’s largest iceberg (~ 4320 km²) recently broke off the Ronne Ice Shelf, Antarctica #Sentinel1 @BAS_News @sentinel_hub @ESA_EO @esascience @EO_OPEN_SCIENCE pic.twitter.com/PdQvfrNgaK

— Adrien Wehrlé (@AdrienWehrle) May 19, 2021

It takes the place as the world’s largest from the A-23A iceberg, approximately 3,880 sq km in size, which is also in the Weddell Sea.

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