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Monday, February 24, 2014

Antarctica - Spectacular, Incredible, Amazing....Icebergs!

Did you know that icebergs are Spectacular! Incredible! Amazing! Icebergs are not just big hunks of ice, looking to punch a hold in the bottom of your boat! Many times we were surrounded by huge, glistening icebergs! The Corinthian employed a Second Mate whose job was solely to watch for icebergs.

As we cruised through the icebergs, the Expedition Team educated us as to the "lingo" of icebergs. We saw many Growlers - floating ice which is 3 feet or less above the sea surface.  Often Growlers are old, clear and very hard.  An iceberg itself, is ice which has calved from a glacier, ice sheet or ice cap, which is at least 15 feet above the surface. A Glacier is ice which is moving over land. An Ice Shelf is an area of thick flat ice which is attached to land. A crevasse is a crack in a glacier caused by the movement of the ice as it moves downhill. Crevasses can be incredibly blue in color - often neon blue. Typically only 10-20% of the iceberg is above water and it is difficult to judge the shape or size of the underwater portion of the iceberg. The largest iceberg reported was the height of a 55 story building!

I apologize in advance for the fact that you will see many more pictures in my other posts. Icebergs are absolutely incredible!










 

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