Chasm 1 A Brunt Ice Shelf, Antarctica story
Glaciers
A feature known as Chasm 1 is prominent in the Landsat imagery. This crack reactivated in December 2012 after no movement for 35 years. The Landsat images show rapid growth of the chasm, especially in 2018 and 2019, as it extends toward the McDonald Ice Rumples.
In early 2019, Chasm 1 was extending north as fast as 4 kilometers per year, and from 2012 to 2021, the rift widened almost three-fold.
The time series of images also shows Chasm 1 moving westward with the flow of the ice shelf.
Location
Dec. 13, 2002, Landsat 7 (path/row 184/114) — Chasm 1, Brunt Ice Shelf, Antarctica
Feb. 13, 2009, Landsat 7 (path/row 184/114) — Chasm 1, Brunt Ice Shelf, Antarctica
Dec. 1, 2013, Landsat 8 (path/row 184/114) — Chasm 1, Brunt Ice Shelf, Antarctica
Oct. 31, 2016, Landsat 8 (path/row 183/114) — Chasm 1, Brunt Ice Shelf, Antarctica
Dec. 21, 2017, Landsat 8 (path/row 183/114) — Chasm 1, Brunt Ice Shelf, Antarctica
Nov. 20, 2018, Landsat 8 (path/row 185/114) — Chasm 1, Brunt Ice Shelf, Antarctica
Oct. 31, 2019, Landsat 8 (path/row 184/114) — Chasm 1, Brunt Ice Shelf, Antarctica
Jan. 7, 2021, Landsat 8 (path/row 182/114) — Chasm 1, Brunt Ice Shelf, Antarctica
Dec. 25, 2021, Landsat 8 (path/row 182/114) — Chasm 1, Brunt Ice Shelf, Antarctica
Feb. 8, 2022, Landsat 9 (path/row 185/114) — Chasm 1, Brunt Ice Shelf, Antarctica
Brunt Ice Shelf, Antarctica Additional Imagery & Stories
A-74
It soon became too dark to see A-74, which covered 1,270 km2, as the Antarctic winter set in. But Landsat 8 continued imaging with its Thermal Infrare...
Halley Station
The British Antarctic Survey has studied Brunt Ice Shelf in person since 1955. Scientists at their Halley Research Station study Earth, atmospheric, a...
Halloween Crack
Another rift appeared on the Brunt Ice Shelf in October 2016 and quickly extended eastward. Dubbed Halloween Crack, it’s located about 12 km north of ...
Ice Rumples
Major rifts have formed near a distinctive feature called the McDonald Ice Rumples. The feature, rising about 10 m above the surrounding ice shelf, ma...
North Rift
While a large iceberg was threatening to form from the Halloween Crack or Chasm 1, a new rift suddenly appeared in satellite images in September 2019 ...
North Rift 2
The rift continued to push northeast at up to 1 km per day as it cut through the 150-m thick ice shelf. GPS equipment detected a break on February 26,...