By Nneka Nwogwugwu
A giant slab of ice has calved from the frozen edge of Antarctica into the Weddell Sea, becoming the largest iceberg afloat in the world, according to the European Space Agency.
The iceberg, dubbed A-76, is about 4,320km square (1,668 sq miles) and is slightly larger than the Spanish island of Mallorca, ESA said in a statement on Wednesday.
It is 175km (106 miles) long and 25km (15 miles) wide, Aljazeera reports.
The world’s second-largest iceberg is also located in the Weddell Sea – the A-23A, which is approximately 3,880km square (1,305sq miles).
Scientists spotted the A-76 in recent satellite images captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-1 mission.
ESA said the iceberg had broken away from the western side of Antarctica’s Ronne Ice Shelf, which is near the base of the Antarctic Peninsula.
Ronne is one of the largest floating ice sheets that connect to the continent’s landmass and extend out into surrounding seas.
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