The largest iceberg in the world could hit an island in the South Atlantic

The world’s largest iceberg is still on the move, raising fears it could head north from Antarctica toward South Georgia Island. The iceberg, named A23a, was previously “stuck,” spinning around a seamount for several months, according to Andrew Meijers, a physical oceanographer at the British Antarctic Survey. Now, it appears to be moving with the prevailing current toward South Georgia, a British Overseas Territory in the South Atlantic Ocean. “It is currently in a meandering current and is not moving directly toward the island,” Meijers said in a statement to CNN on Thursday. “However, our understanding of the currents suggests it is likely to move back toward the island soon.”

“Icebergs are inherently dangerous. I would be extremely happy if it just missed us entirely,” said Captain Simon Wallace, who spoke to the BBC from the South Georgia government ship Pharos. “We keep the spotlights on all night to try to see the ice – it can come out of nowhere,” Wallace added. “It is likely to move back toward the island soon,” said Andrew Meijers, an oceanographer at the British Antarctic Survey.

The iceberg remains the largest in the world, according to updated measurements from the U.S. National Ice Center earlier this month. Spanning an area of 3,672 square kilometers (1,418 square miles) as measured in August – slightly larger than Rhode Island and more than twice the size of London – iceberg A23a has been closely tracked by scientists since it broke off from the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf in 1986. It stayed grounded on the Weddell Sea floor in Antarctica for over 30 years, possibly until it shrank enough to loosen its grip on the seabed.

The iceberg then drifted with ocean currents before getting stuck again in a Taylor column – a whirlpool of water caused by ocean currents hitting a seamount. In December, the iceberg broke free. Initially, scientists expected it to continue drifting along ocean currents toward warmer waters. At the time, the British Antarctic Survey said the iceberg would likely fragment and eventually melt once it reached the remote island of South Georgia.

For now, however, satellite images show that the iceberg has maintained its structure and has not yet broken into smaller pieces, as previous “megabergs” have, Meijers said. The question now is whether the iceberg will follow the current and head into the open South Atlantic or move onto the continental shelf, where it could become grounded for a while. “If that happens, it could seriously obstruct access to feeding areas for wildlife – primarily seals and penguins – that breed on the island,” Meijers said.

Meanwhile, Mark Belchier, director of fisheries and environment for the government of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, told CNN on Thursday that he is closely monitoring the iceberg’s path. “While they are common in South Georgia, they can pose problems for fishing vessels in the region,” Belchier added. Belchier said any potential impact on wildlife is likely to be “highly localized and temporary.”

South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands are home to a rich biodiversity and one of the world’s largest Marine Protected Areas. Scientists have said that this particular iceberg likely calved as part of the natural growth cycle of the ice shelf and not due to the climate crisis driven by fossil fuels. However, global warming is driving alarming changes in Antarctica, with potentially devastating consequences for global sea-level rise.

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