Huge New Cracks Seen in Arctic Ice Shelf

Giant ice shelf is falling apart and could float away
Posted May 24, 2008 6:24 AM CDT
Huge New Cracks Seen in Arctic Ice Shelf
In Greenland, broken water in the previously solid icecap is the starkest evidence of climate change.   (Magnum Photos)

A Canadian expedition has found a major new network of cracks, more than 10 miles long, in the Arctic's ice shelves, the BBC reports. Scientists say the huge shelves are disintegrating; pieces become "ice islands" that can float hundreds of miles away as climate changes takes hold. Arctic sea ice shrank to a record low last year and could melt even further this summer, accelerating a scramble for the Arctic's resources. (More Arctic stories.)

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