November 6, 2009 and released on November 12, 2009 by the Australian Antarctic Division shows a giant iceberg, estimated to be about 50 metres high and 500 metres long as it drifts past the Australian sub-Antarctic territory of Macquarie Island. The new iceberg is 40 times bigger. AFP PHOTO / AUSTRALIAN ANTARCTIC DIVISION / Tessa BICKFORD

Once in a century event is largest intact iceberg

The largest intact iceberg to drift slowly north has been spotted with satellite imagery. It is 19 Km long and broke off from The Ross Shelf in Antarctica ten years ago.

It was spotted by glaciologist Dr. Neal Young of the Australian Antarctic Division from NASA photos

“B17B is a very significant one in that it has drifted so far north while still largely intact. It’s one of the biggest sighted at those latitudes, now 48.8º S and 107.5º E” he said.

“As the water warms up the iceberg is slowly breaking up, resulting in hundreds more smaller icebergs in the area,” he said. couriermail.com.au

B17B in NASA satellite photo

“I don’t recall any mention of one for a long, long time,” Dr. Young is quoted in AFP.

“I’m guessing you would probably have to go back to the times of the clipper ships. This one has survived in the open ocean for about a year. In that time it’s slowly been coming up to the north and north east in the general direction of Western Australia.”

This could be a sign of global warming or not. Unusual events occur in nature but they may indicate nothing more than the random events.