The World's Largest Iceberg Sets Sail for Adventure Beyond Antarctic Waters

By Nancy Atkinson - January 25, 2024 at 4:16 PM UTC | Planetary Science
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In November 2023, the monster iceberg A23e finally dislodged from the seafloor after being grounded and stuck there for 40 years. A series of recent satellite images show that the mighty iceberg is now heading away from Antarctic waters, seeking fame and fortune in the high seas. A23a measures 4,000 sq kilometers in area and is over 280 meters thick, and is currently the world's largest iceberg. Its first path will follow the Antarctic Circumpolar Current, heading towards South America.

Tiny Elephant Island, an ice-covered, mountainous island off the coast of Antarctica seen in the image above, has an area of only 215 sq km.

ESA's Copernicus Sentinel-1 satellite and NOAA's Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer 2 (AMSR2) onboard the GCOM-W1 satellite have been keeping an eye on the moving behemoth, which appears to be driven by winds and currents. Scientists estimate it is moving at a rate of about 4.8 km (3 miles) each day, but that could change as it enters the currents.

Iceberg A23a separated from the Fichner-Ronne ice shelf in West Antarctica in 1986. It was so big that it became grounded, stuck to the seafloor, and remained in position for 40 years. ESA said it is not unusual for icebergs to become grounded, but over time they shrink enough to become unground and float.

A23a is a biggie, but it's not the largest ever. It is only about one-third the size of the biggest iceberg in recorded history, B-15 which calved off of Antarctica's Ross Ice Shelf in 2000. The B-15 iceberg covered more than 10,878 square km (4,200 square miles) when it broke away, according to NASA’s Earth Observatory. B-15 has since fractured into numerous smaller bergs, and most have melted away.

Like many icebergs before it, A23a is being propelled it towards the South Atlantic along a trajectory commonly referred to as 'iceberg alley', because of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current.

Nancy Atkinson

Nancy Atkinson

Nancy Atkinson is a space journalist and author with a passion for telling the stories of people involved in space exploration and astronomy. She is currently retired from daily writing, but worked at Universe Today for 20 years as a writer and editor. She also contributed articles to The Planetary Society, Ad Astra (National Space Society), New Scientist and many other online outlets.

Her 2019 book, "Eight Years to the Moon: The History of the Apollo Missions,” shares the untold stories of engineers and scientists who worked behind the scenes to make the Apollo program so successful, despite the daunting odds against it. Her first book “Incredible Stories From Space: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at the Missions Changing Our View of the Cosmos” (2016) tells the stories of 37 scientists and engineers that work on several current NASA robotic missions to explore the solar system and beyond.

Nancy is also a NASA/JPL Solar System Ambassador, and through this program, she has the opportunity to share her passion of space and astronomy with children and adults through presentations and programs. Nancy's personal website is nancyatkinson.com