Big ‘berg
Alright, so an iceberg isn’t exactly “weather,” but the weather (via ocean currents) affect their motion so we’re including one here. Yes, we know it is a stretch, but just work with us here, OK?
Iceberg A68a has been closely monitored by scientists in the three years since it broke off the Larsen C ice shelf on the Antarctic Peninsula. After puttering around near its ancestral home, it finally began a journey away from the Antarctic and into the open waters of the Southern Ocean. The Antarctic Circumpolar Current whisked it northward…and toward an ecologically sensitive island teeming with wildlife.
The will it or won’t it smash into a penguin rookery or mow over a pack of unsuspecting seal pups has keep ecologists on the edge of their seats for months. Iceberg A68a’s ponderous size that appeared spelled doom for the island’s fragile ecosystems may end up being its saving grace. The ‘berg extends far enough below the water that it appears to have snagged on the island’s shallow shelf. A piece three times the size of Manhattan fractured off and may still be an issue, but it appears it and the main iceberg are likely to skirt the southern end of the island. In year light on weather wins, we’re calling this one.
