NSF PA/M 99-24 - September 22, 1999
First Sea-Level Photographs Released of Massive
Antarctic Iceberg
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Available now: Digital photographs taken from the Laurence M. Gould
of iceberg B-10-A. Resolution of 300 dpi. Also available on Betacam
SP.
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Digital photographs of iceberg B-10-A are available from the National
Science Foundation (NSF). B-10-A is a massive iceberg that is drifting
towards South America from Antarctica and may threaten shipping lanes
around Cape Horn.
The photographs were taken by the crew of the Laurence M. Gould, an
NSF polar research vessel that circumnavigated the iceberg earlier this
month. The Gould is the only known surface vessel to photograph the iceberg
and to collect samples of its ice.
The size of B-10-A is estimated at 24 by 48 statute miles. The Gould
reports that it took the ship 12 hours to circumnavigate B-10-A at a speed
of 10 knots. Besides photographing the iceberg, the crew plotted its main
body with the ship's bridge-mounted radar and collected about 40 pounds
of blue ice fragments for further study. A plot of the ship's track, which
outlines the dimensions of the iceberg, is also available in digital form.
The iceberg is the remnant of a piece that broke off the Thwaites Ice
Tongue, an extension of the Thwaites Glacier in Antarctica in the early
1990's. In the summer of 1995, the iceberg broke into two pieces; the
largest became B-10-A.
For more information contact:
Peter West (703) 292-8070/pwest@nsf.gov
Graph:
Iceberg B10A -
Survey Points and LMG Ship Track - 9/16/99
Select image for larger version
(Size: 80KB)
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