Researchers say part of a very large shelf of ice on Antarctica could soon break off and become an iceberg. A team of scientists is closely watching part of the Larsen Ice Shelf, off the coast of northwestern Antarctica. The area is connected to land, but floats on seawater instead of sitting on top of the continent. The piece of ice, known as Larsen C Ice Shelf, caught the attention of researchers a few years ago. There are many cracks, or signs of weakness, in the ice. In 2010, the scientists found that one crack was getting bigger. Martin O’Leary is with Swansea University in Wales. He spoke with VOA about the work he does with Project MIDAS, the British group studying Antarctica. “We became concerned in 2014 when it started to become obvious that this crack was going to produce a particularly large iceberg, much larger than we had initially expected.” Icebergs are huge masses of ice that break off from glaciers in coastal areas.
