Discovery of Giant Icebergs
Scientists uncovered evidence of city-sized icebergs that once drifted off ancient Britain's coasts, leaving distinctive scratch marks on the floor over 18,000 years ago.
These findings, derived from detailed 3D seismic data, suggest that the British-Irish ice sheet produced massive tabular icebergs, indicating the presence of ice shelves in the region.
Implications for Modern Climate Understanding
The research offers crucial insights into how climate change might affect Antarctica today, highlighting the potential impact of ice shelf disintegration on global sea levels.
A significant shift from the production of giant icebergs to smaller, more frequent ones about 18,000 years ago suggests a rapid disintegration of ice shelves, paralleling concerns about current Antarctic ice shelf stability.