The Antarctic is divided into giant icebergs that can cause disasters for the future of the planet

The changes that have occurred in the formation of Antarctica in recent years – melting surfaces or blocks of melting ice from the continent – are putting scientists in the world on hold. It turns out that, for geological periods, all these transformations occur at a glance and can cause the flooding of several coastal cities of the planet.

For more than three decades, it was found that West Antarctica was beginning to melt. This has been reported by the University of California and NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL).

Now, what worries scientists – in addition to melting – is a gigantic Antarctic block called Larsen C, which is about to separate from the Antarctic Peninsula platform and which, with its detachment, could be the precursor to a white continent, which could cause floods that would wreak havoc in many cities around the world, according to a report by
National Geographic

According to this support dedicated to science and nature, the banks of the Larsen C are disintegrated with the same ease as a sand castle. In addition, on its surface, large cracks are distributed that share the space with molten lagoons up to 400 square meters.

The crack that is about to separate the Larsen C from the mainland is nearly 200 kilometers long and in some of its areas, its width can reach 2,000 meters. When it finally reaches its full extent, it will lead to the creation of an iceberg of some 5,000 square kilometers, one of the largest ever recorded. This isolated block would have an area of ​​approximately 25 times the area of ​​the city of Buenos Aires, which has 203 square kilometers.

Eric Rignot, a professor at the University of California and scientist at NASA, said the recent reversal of the crack reveals his early fracture. "From my experience, when the gap takes a 90 degree turn, as in this case, the fracture is imminent, it's a matter of weeks."

The Amudsen Sea, which is also in the western part of Antarctica, has warmed by more than 0.5 ° C and at that time, the speed at which the ice bottom and fracture quadrupled. Already between 2015 and 2016, a block of about 360 square kilometers separated and moved away from the coast of the same sea. And in the Antarctic Peninsula itself, the Larsen block A in 1995 and the Larsen block B in 2002 had already been released.

Predictions of temperature increase in the case of the Wedell Sea, adjacent to the Grand C, are at 5 ° C on average. For this reason, many small packs have completely succumbed. And that's also why Larsen C is about to become a floating ice platform.

The results

The importance of the crack that is developing is that the ice that will clear is located in a series of islands. On the contrary, much of the remainder of the peninsula's shelf is based on a pool with a depth of 5000 km, which makes it particularly vulnerable to rising ocean temperatures.

The situation is complicated because, because of the sea temperature and without the Larsen C, the pack ice will disarm and break into pieces smaller and smaller. As the phenomenon occurs at an increasing rate, the sea level will rise by more than three meters, flooding entire cities around the world.

In this way, the melting and breaking of the pack ice in this area of ​​Antarctica is a dramatic case. Between 1994 and 2015, the amount of ice was reduced by 10%. Most disturbing is that the removal of Larsen C ice could affect the nearby Thwaites Glacier, which could destabilize most of West Antarctica.

"Now these glaciers are disappearing faster and faster off the Earth's surface," said Rignot, who has been studying the region for over 20 years using satellites and planes. The scientist thinks that the collapse of the western layer of the Antarctic ice is inevitable. "It's only a matter of time.The important thing is whether this will happen in a period of 500 years or less than 100. And most importantly, if humanity will be Quick enough to get ready for events, incognito and do it before it's too late, "Rignot condemned.