Massive Rift Found In Antarctica’s Larsen Ice Shelf

Scientists who are on board NASA's IceBridge mission found a massive rift in the Antarctic Peninsula's Larsen C ice shelf.

The ominous crack, according to Live Science, is as wide as the length of a football field and is said to look like an otherworldly beauty. The crack, when it eventually spreads across the entire ice shelf, could create an iceberg the same size as the state of Delaware, or about 2,491 square miles.

According to NASA, IceBridge scientists estimated the crack to be approximately 70 miles long, and over 300 feet wide, with a crack down to up to a third of a mile, through the ice, and into the vast ocean below. While the crack cuts through the ice shelf completely, it does not go all the way across -- yet.

NASA's Earth Sciences program noted that the rift is relatively new, as it was seen growing on satellite imagery as early as this year. But the U.K.-based Antarctic Research Group, MIDAS Project, first noticed it in 2014 and has been tracking it since.

Larsen C is the fourth largest ice shelf in Antarctica, holding back some land-based glaciers just behind. However, once the ice shelf disappears, the slow-flowing glaciers are expected to shift, with one less barrier blocking their way to sea. Once the ice behind accelerates and makes its way to the ocean, NASA noted that it can then add to the rise of sea levels.

This rifting on Larson C is not the first to happen. A similar incident also happened in 2002 when the Larsen B partially collapsed after a similar rift appeared. The MIDAS Project noted that the caving of the current sheet could remove about 9 percent to 12 percent of the total surface area of the Larsen C shelf and could lead to the crumbling of the entire shelf itself.