News Climate

Here’s what happened to the Delaware-sized iceberg that broke off Antarctica

Scientists have identified a previously unknown mechanism for large berg breakups

Iceberg A68a in the Southern Ocean during July 2020

Iceberg A68a (shown in July 2020) was the largest remnant of a Delaware-sized chunk of ice that split off from Antarctica in 2017.

Copernicus Sentinel-1/ESA (CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO)

By Carolyn Gramling

- More than 2 years ago

It was the rift watched ‘round the world.

In July 2017, after weeks of anticipation, a massive iceberg about the size of Delaware split from the Antarctic Peninsula (SN: 7/12/17).