Paris — A trillion-ton iceberg, one of the largest ever recorded, has snapped off the West Antarctic ice shelf, scientists who have monitored the growing crack for years said on Wednesday. "The calving occurred sometime between Monday, July 10 and Wednesday, July 12, when a 5,800km² section of Larsen C (ice shelf) finally broke away," the Swansea University said in a statement. The massive ice cube, larger than the US state of Delaware, has a volume twice that of Lake Erie, one of the Great Lakes. It is about 350m thick. "The iceberg weighs more than a trillion tons, but it was already floating before it calved away so has no immediate impact on sea level," the team said. It will likely be named A68. With the calving, the Larsen C ice shelf lost more than 12% of its total surface area. Icebergs calving from Antarctica are a regular occurrence. But given its enormous size, the latest berg will be closely watched as it travels, for any potential risk to shipping traffic. The calving m...
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