At the beginning of this year, it was more than twice the size of Greater London.
And as we enter September, the world's largest ice mass, known as A23a, is nearing its end.
Ranked among the oldest and largest mega-bergs ever recorded, A23a has disintegrated in warmer waters and could disappear within weeks, scientists say.
Often compared to the shape of a tooth, the colossal ice has been traveling northward in the South Atlantic Ocean for months.
Now, exposed to increasingly warmer waters and battered by huge waves, the former "king of the seas" is rapidly disintegrating.
Mr Andrew Meijers, physical oceanographer at the British Antarctic Survey (BAS), said A23a is "breaking up quite dramatically" as it moves further north.
"Oh, I would say it's very close to the end... it's collapsing from the inside," Meijers told AFP.
“[Lately] the water is too warm to hold it. It’s melting all the time.”
Earlier this year, the mega-berg weighed about a trillion tons – about 100 million times more than the Eiffel Tower in Paris.
At its peak, A23a had an area of about 1,540 square miles – more than double the size of Greater London (607 square miles) – and a thickness of 1,312 feet.
Now, according to analysis of satellite images by AFP, it is 683 square miles and 37 miles at its widest point, being less than half its original size.
In recent weeks, large pieces of about 150 square miles have broken away, while smaller pieces, still large enough to threaten ships, are scattered in the sea around it.
Like coastal erosion of land, waves strike the ice, creating spaces that gradually widen until the peak collapses, leaving little "spikes" that then form smaller "spikes."
As it continues to move northward, carried by ocean currents, the surrounding waters become warmer and the ice will soon melt completely.
“I expect this to continue in the coming weeks, and I expect that within a few weeks it will no longer be identifiable,” Mr. Meijers said.
Scientists are "surprised" by how long the ice has stayed together, according to Meijers.
He added: "Most icebergs don't reach that far. This one is really big, so it lasted longer and went further than the others."
But, ultimately, the ice is "destined to disappear" once it leaves the frozen protection of Antarctica – and it's only a matter of time before it disappears.
A23a is the largest surviving fragment of an iceberg that broke off from Antarctica's Filchner Ice Shelf in August 1986.
It had only moved a few hundred miles when it became stuck or "hardened" on the sea floor - and remained motionless for 30 years.
Ice "hardens" on the sea floor when its bottom (keel) is deeper than the water depth.
A23a was finally released in 2020 and began moving northward, although its journey was occasionally delayed by oceanic forces that kept it spinning in place.
This large block of fresh water was being transported by the most powerful ocean current in the world – the Antarctic Circumpolar Current.
Around March, it rose in shallow waters near the remote island of South Georgia, raising concerns that it could hit the breeding and feeding grounds of adult penguins and their chicks.
Fortunately, A23a was released at the end of May, circled the island, and continued its journey north.
However, the solidification and "massive release of cold water" could have had a major impact on organisms on the seabed and in the surrounding water, a BAS spokesman told the Daily Mail.
In recent weeks, the ice has picked up speed, sometimes travelling up to 12 miles (20 km) in a day – about the distance between Camden and Croydon.
Mr Meijers, who encountered the ice in late 2023 and has been tracking it with satellites ever since, described A23a as a “giant Game of Thrones-style ice wall”.
“With some waves hitting and if a little bit of sun comes through, it’s really dramatic,” he said.
Ice “calving” – the breaking off of pieces from the edge – is a natural process, often caused by the formation of cracks.
But scientists say the rate at which ice is being lost from Antarctica is increasing, possibly due to human-caused climate change.
What are glaciers and why are they important?
Ice floes are pieces of fresh water longer than 50 feet that have broken off from a glacier or ice shelf and float freely in open water.
Glaciers that break off from an already floating ice shelf do not displace seawater when they melt – just as ice cubes in a glass do not raise the level of the liquid.
Some glaciers contain significant amounts of iron-rich sediment, known as "tainted ice".
“These glaciers fertilize the ocean by providing important nutrients for marine organisms such as phytoplankton,” said Lorna Linch, lecturer in physical geography at the University of Brighton.
Icebergs can also pose a danger to ships sailing in polar regions – as demonstrated in April 1912, when an iceberg caused the sinking of the RMS Titanic in the North Atlantic Ocean.
Glaciers can reach over 300 feet above the sea surface and weigh from about 100,000 tons to over 10 million tons.
Glaciers or pieces of floating ice smaller than 16 feet above the sea surface are classified as "bergy bits", while those smaller than 3 feet are called "growlers". /GazetaExpress/
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