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Antarctic Ice Bridge Snaps
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by Jordan Yerman | April 5, 2009 at 09:57 am
367 views | 37 Recommendations | 4 comments
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The ice bridge linking the 80-nautical-mile-long Wilkins Ice Shelf to the rest of Antarctica has snapped, which means that the Wilkins Ice Shelf, the size of Jamaica, can break free of the mainland.
The causes of the loosening of the shelf are rising temperatures and seismic activity.
Also see the British Antarctic Survey.
Sited on the western side of the Antarctic Peninsula, the Wilkins shelf has been retreating since the 1990s.
Researchers regarded the ice bridge as an important barrier, holding the remnant shelf structure in place.
Over the past 50 years, the peninsula has been one of the fastest warming places on the planet.
Recently revealed European Space Agency satellite image shows newly created icebergs floating in the sea on the western side of the Antarctic peninsula, which juts up from the continent towards South America’s southern tip.
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Most RecentMost Recommended Comments (4)
at 10:03 on April 5th, 2009
Whoa! That was fast! Barbara just wrote about that yesterday.
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A. Tranat 10:04 on April 5th, 2009
I've been following this awful news... thank you, Jordan, for drawing attention to this story.
at 10:16 on April 5th, 2009
BBC video: Antarctic ice shelf breaks up
at 10:21 on April 5th, 2009
So scary - I'm concerned about the rising sea levels as that water has to resettle somewhere and it's only going to be a ripple effect.