SAR analysis of the Larsen-C A-68 iceberg displacements

Abstract

The fracture of the Larsen C ice shelf, which has been continuously monitored since the final months of 2016, started to grow rapidly in 2017 and, in February 2017, only a 20 km ice strip kept a huge section of the shelf attached to the Antarctic Peninsula. The final collapse, expected in 2017, occurred indeed between July 10 and July 12, with a loss of an area of some 6,000 km2, corresponding to about 9–12% of the entire shelf. Following US National Ice Center (NIC) criteria, the calved iceberg was named ‘A-68’. Responding to the ASI ‘COSMO-SkyMed Open Call for Science Initiative’, this paper presents a study of the initial phase of iceberg A-68 melting process and drifting trajectory. The analysis covers a period of six months and makes use of a set of COSMO-SkyMed ScanSAR Huge images.