An iceberg named A-23A, which broke off from the Antarctic ice sheet in 1986, is rapidly melting and has turned from snowy white to bright cyan due to accumulating meltwater. Earth satellites monitoring the iceberg for decades indicate it is nearing complete collapse, likely before the austral summer ends.
Chris Schumann, a former geoscientist, stated he doesn’t expect A-23A to last much longer. The iceberg, once stable in the Weddell Sea for nearly 30 years, began disintegrating after becoming trapped and then released from a vortex called the Taylor Column in 2023.
By early January 2026, the iceberg had shrunk significantly from its peak size of 3,640 square kilometers in January 2025 to just 1,182 square kilometers. The accelerated melting process is exacerbated by rising temperatures, causing cracks to widen and potential collapse.
Satellite images show a “castle moat” effect, where melting at the waterline traps meltwater and increases pressure, leading to fragmentation. A-23A is now moving toward an “iceberg graveyard” near South Georgia, where it will eventually dissolve back into the ocean. Schumann emphasizes the importance of tracking such changes, noting that despite its lengthy journey, A-23A’s time is running out.
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