• UK
  • World
    • USA
  • Entertainment
    • Celeb
    • Showbiz
    • Magazine
  • Politics
  • Sports
  • Gaming
  • Tech
  • Science
    • Education
  • Insurance
  • Business
  • Auto
  • ToS/Contact
    • ToS
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact
NewsExplored
  • UK
  • World
    • USA
  • Entertainment
    • Celeb
    • Showbiz
    • Magazine
  • Politics
  • Sports
  • Gaming
  • Tech
  • Science
    • Education
  • Insurance
  • Business
  • Auto
  • ToS/Contact
    • ToS
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact
  • Facebook

  • Twitter

  • LinkedIn

  • Tumblr

  • RSS

Science

Milne Ice Shelf: Satellites capture Arctic ice split

Milne Ice Shelf: Satellites capture Arctic ice split
Newsexplored
11th August 2020
ShareTweet
SubscribeRedditGoogleWhatsappStumbleuponPinterestDiggLinkedinTumblrTelegram
Views:
1
Milne Ice Shelf on 31 JulyImage copyright PLANET LABS INC
Image caption By 31 July, the Milne Ice Shelf’s northern front had fractured
Presentational white space

The Planet Earth-observation company has just released new imagery of the broken Milne Ice Shelf in the Arctic.

Located on the northern margin of Canada’s Ellesmere Island, the ice platform split on 30/31 July to form a free-floating bloc some 80 sq km (30 sq miles) in area.

By 3 August, this berg, or “ice island”, had itself ruptured in two, with both segments then seen to drift out into the Arctic Ocean.

Ice shelves are the floating fronts of glaciers that have flowed off the land into the sea.

Ellesmere Island was once bounded by extensive shelves that had melded into a single structure.

  • Satellites record history of Antarctic melting
  • Coronavirus severely restricts Antarctic science

At the beginning of the 20th Century, this covered 8,600 sq km. But by the turn of the millennium, a rapidly warming climate had reduced and segmented the floating ice cover to just 1,050 sq km.

Further break-up events in 2003, 2005, 2008, 2011 and 2012, and now in 2020, mean the shelf area is currently under 500 sq km.

Milne itself now measures only 106 sq km.

The pictures from the Californian Planet company come from its Dove satellites. The imagery was acquired on 26 July (“before”) and 31 July (“after”).

Interesting to note are the numerous melt ponds that cover the surface of the shelf. The presence of such liquid water can be problematic for ice platforms.

If it fills crevasses, it can help to open them up. The water will push down on the fissures, driving them through to the base of the shelf in a process known as hydrofracturing. This will weaken an ice shelf.

data-ad-format="auto">
Milne Ice Shelf on 26 JulyImage copyright PLANET LABS INC
Image caption Before break-up on 26 July. Milne is a remnant of a once great Arctic ice shelf structure

Jonathan.Amos-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk and follow me on Twitter: @BBCAmos

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Google+ (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)
  • Share on Skype (Opens in new window)

Related

Related Itemsarcticcapturemilnesatellitesshelfsplit
Science
11th August 2020
Newsexplored @newsexploredweb

Related Itemsarcticcapturemilnesatellitesshelfsplit

More in Science

  • Read More
    What’s the science behind closing schools?

    Views:1 By Will FyfeBBC News media captionDr Heather Payne says school drop off and pick-ups created “social...

    Newsexplored 11th August 2020
  • Read More
    Coronavirus: Virus provides leaps in scientific understanding

    Views:1 By Victoria GillScience correspondent, BBC News image copyrightGetty Images image captionA worker takes away an escaped...

    Newsexplored 11th August 2020
  • Read More
    What is Elon Musk’s Starship?

    Views:1 By Paul RinconScience editor, BBC News website image copyrightGetty Images image captionSpaceX has been developing a...

    Newsexplored 11th August 2020
  • Read More
    Cancelled exams are a ‘big disappointment’

    Views:1 image captionJake did not want exams to be cancelled “It’s a big disappointment,” says 17-year-old Jake...

    Newsexplored 11th August 2020
  • Read More
    Hawaiian shirts and gravy: Christmas tributes for loved ones lost to Covid

    Views:1 Christmas is different for everyone this year but especially for the thousands of UK families who...

    Newsexplored 11th August 2020
  • Read More
    Giant Antarctic iceberg A68a is not done yet

    Views:1 By Jonathan AmosBBC Science Correspondent media captionSee how the keel of the giant iceberg has changed...

    Newsexplored 11th August 2020
  • Read More
    England ‘significant decline’ in global science tests

    Views:1 By Sean CoughlanBBC News family and education correspondent image copyrightTIMSS image captionThe maths and science tests...

    Newsexplored 11th August 2020
  • Read More
    Covid: Some students not back until February next term

    Views:1 By Sean CoughlanBBC News family and education correspondent image copyrightReuters image captionStudents have been taking Covid...

    Newsexplored 11th August 2020
  • Read More
    Covid: How might GCSE and A-levels work this summer?

    Views:1 By Branwen JeffreysEducation Editor image copyrightGetty Images A-levels and GCSEs in England are due to go...

    Newsexplored 11th August 2020
  • Read More
    Special educational needs support ‘offered after exclusion’

    Views:1 By Kayleen DevlinBBC Ouch image copyrightEmily image captionEmily says she feels let down by the system...

    Newsexplored 11th August 2020
  • Read More
    Sentinel-6: ‘Dog kennel’ satellite blasts off on ocean mission

    Views:1 By Jonathan AmosBBC Science Correspondent Related Topics media captionArtwork: The unusual shape, with fixed solar panels,...

    Newsexplored 11th August 2020
  • Read More
    Electric vehicles: Your questions answered

    Views:1 By Justin RowlattChief environment correspondent image copyrightReuters image captionIn a decade, you won’t be able to...

    Newsexplored 11th August 2020
Scroll for more
Tap
data-ad-format="auto">
NewsExplored

NewsExplored - Making sure all the latest news is explored?

Contact us for help

  • Popular

  • Latest

  • Comments

  • Australian Open: Heather Watson among 47 players to quarantine in Melbourne after Covid cases on flights
    Sports16th January 2021
  • The Papers: ‘Fortress Britain’ and ‘modern miracle workers’
    UK15th January 2021
  • Fashion lookahead: Eight major 2021 looks from tie-dye to pastels
    Entertainment30th December 2020
  • Fifa 21 and Frozen 2 top digital sales of 2020
    Tech8th January 2021
  • Tampa Bay Buccaneers 31-26 Green Bay Packers; Buffalo Bills 24-38 Kansas City Chiefs
    USA25th January 2021
  • The homeless drug addict who became a history professor
    USA24th January 2021
  • Kamala Harris: What the vice-president did on her first day
    USA21st January 2021
  • Biden inauguration: New president to be sworn in amid Trump snub
    USA20th January 2021
  • Les Rehrer says:

    Hello Its me :P and thanks for this post

  • optumrx login says:

    Thank For News.

  • Kent Laatsch says:

    Please let me know if you're looking for a writer…

  • Bob says:

    RT News was where I learned that Erdogan controlled isis.…

Copyright © 2018 Top News Theme. Theme by MVP Themes, powered by Wordpress.

Climate change: Warming world will be ‘devastating’ for frozen peatlands
New dinosaur related to T. rex discovered on Isle of Wight
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.Ok