European Space Agency spots Greenland glacier calving massive iceberg

A massive chunk of ice, the size of Manhattan, has been severed from Greenland’s Jakobshavn glacier. Assuming the ice is about 1400 meters deep, this equates a volume of 17.5 cubic kilometers – which could cover the whole of Manhattan Island by a layer of ice about 300 meters thick.

Icebergs are usually so big that it’s impossible for them to easily float away, sometimes remaining stuck to a fjord’s shallower area until they melt, which allows for breaking into pieces. Scientists say the glacier moves at tens of metres a day in Summer months, making it one of the fastest flowing ice streams in Greenland, if not the fastest.

Members of the Arctic Sea Ice Forum first observed the ice chunk separating from the Jakobshavn glacier between the days of August 14 and 16.

The picture time collection means that between 27 July and 13 August, the glacier superior westward earlier than the calving prompted speedy retreat of the entrance to its place on 19 August.

The lost ice is the result of a process called “calving”.

Jakobshavn glacier produces 10% of Greenland’s icebergs, which ESA state is equivalent to 35 billion tonnes of ice that calve – release ice- every year. However, these estimates are preliminary, and satellite images from before and after an event can not show whether the ice was lost all at once or during a series of smaller events.

The Sentinel-2a satellite is Europe’s new optical spacecraft, that comprises twin polar-orbiting satellites in the same orbit at 180 to each other, and can provide context imagery. The red, green and blue indicate the position of the calving front and other dynamic features on each respective date. Satellite images will be used to determine various plant indices such as leaf area chlorophyll and water content indexes. Not only can it see through cloud, it can also be used to map flow and elevation changes.

Images of floods, volcanic eruptions and landslides contribute to disaster mapping and help humanitarian relief efforts.

Sentinel-2A was launched on 23 June 2015 and Sentinel-2B will follow in the second half of 2016. Collectively, these and future Sentinels, particularly the upcoming Sentinel-Three mission, will add additional complementary measurements for operational purposes and scientific functions.