New Rifts Discovered On Antarctic Ice Shelf Could Lead To It Breaking Away From Antarctic Penninsula

New Rifts Discovered On Antarctic Ice Shelf Could Lead To It Breaking Away From Antarctic Penninsula

Scientists have identified new rifts on an Antarctic ice shelf that could lead to it breaking away from the Antarctic Peninsula, the European Space Agency said.

The Wilkins Ice Shelf, a large sheet of floating ice south of South America, is connected to two Antarctic islands by a strip of ice. That ice "bridge" has lost about 2,000 square kilometers (about 772 square miles) this year, the ESA said.

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