Huge Iceberg Could Threaten Penguins in the South Atlantic Ocean

01Scientists are worried that a large iceberg heading toward an island in the South Atlantic Ocean could threaten wildlife there.

02Researchers say the iceberg is the largest in the world.

03It is moving through the South Atlantic toward the island of South Georgia.

04The island is a British overseas territory that is about 1,400 kilometers east of the Falkland Islands.

05Scientists say South Georgia is a main mating ground for wildlife, especially penguins and seals.

06The iceberg is officially known as A-23A and it measures about 3,500 square kilometers.

07It has existed since 1986 when it broke off from the Antarctic shelf.

08Andrew Myers is an oceanographer with the British Antarctic Survey.

09He told the French news agency AFP that scientists have been using satellite imagery to follow the iceberg's movements.

10Myers said observations had shown the iceberg had not broken into smaller pieces, like some other so-called megabergs that passed through the Southern Ocean.

11He added that predicting the iceberg's exact path is difficult, but ocean conditions suggest it should reach South Georgia in two to four weeks.

12Myers said he is worried the iceberg will get caught on the underground continental shelf around South Georgia.

13Myers said it is also possible the large ice mass could miss the shelf and continue moving into open waters beyond South Georgia.

14If the iceberg does get caught or stuck on the shelf, Myers said it could remain there for months or it could break into pieces.

15Myers is concerned that this could harm efforts by penguins and seals on the island to feed and raise their young.

16Icebergs that have grounded there in the past led to the deaths of young penguins and seals, he said.

17Raul Cordero is a mechanical engineer from Chile's University of Santiago.

18He is also a member of the National Antarctic Research Committee.

19Cordero told AFP he thinks the iceberg will miss South Georgia.

20The island acts as an obstacle for ocean currents, and therefore usually diverts the water long before it reaches the island, he said.

21The iceberg is moved by that water flow, so the chances of it hitting are not that high.

22Cordero added, however, that some iceberg pieces could affect the island.

23Soledad Taranti is a glacier expert who is currently on an Argentinian exploration trip in the Antarctic.

24She told AFP that icebergs such as A23A are so deep that before reaching an island or mainland, they generally get stuck on the seabed.

25It is currently summer in South Georgia, and penguins and seals from the area have been looking for food in the cold Antarctic waters to bring back to their young.

26Myers said the animals might have to go around the iceberg if it gets stuck.

27He added that if they had to move around it, this would take a lot of their energy, possibly leading to animal deaths.

28The seal and penguin populations on South Georgia have already been having a bad season with cases of bird flu, Myers said.

29Iceberg A23A remained stuck for 30 years before finally breaking free from the Antarctic shelf in 2020.

30Scientists watching its movements say the iceberg has followed nearly the same path as other large ice masses in the past.

31The icebergs generally pass the east side of the Antarctic Peninsula through the Weddell Sea along a path known as Iceberg Alley.

32They are pushed by the world's most powerful ocean current system, the Antarctic Circumpolar Current.

33I'm Brian Lynn.

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36I'm Brian Lynn.