The first pictures of a strangely-shaped iceberg discovered during a survey flight over Antarctica fascinated the internet, as people become engrossed with the subjected and wild theories stated to appear on forums. Some of the answers may not have been what NASA expected, but the users wanted more.
NASA was generous enough to grant their wish as they can now access a dedicated Flickr page were images with the iceberg and a host of other similar icebergs analyzed by them are available for everyone to see and enjoy.
While icebergs with straight edges have been spotted before, the distinctive shape was a landmark discovery for the team as it rushed to study the object.
The iceberg quickly went viral as the original and most popular photo of the iceberg makes it look like a perfect square. Satellite imagery revealed that the iceberg isn’t a perfect square as it looks to be more oblong.
It is interesting to observe such a perfectly angular object, and both researchers and internet users were attracted to discover more about the ice that covers large areas of your planets.
Such icebergs form rarely as the ice has to break cleanly in order to avoid the appearance of jagged corners. They are known as tabular icebergs and are usually quite smaller in size while also having a variety of shapes.
As expected, the event was accompanied by the rise of conspiracy theories which claimed the iceberg was a sign that a more advanced civilization is watching us from above before they were easily dismissed by researchers.
What makes it particularly interesting is the fact that it recently changed its direction. While at first it was moving away from Antarctica, the iceberg is now on its way back and it may eventually collide with the Larsen C ice shelf.
Researchers will continue to observe the iceberg as more and more people are accessing the Flickr page.
As our second lead editor, Anna C. Mackinno provides guidance on the stories Great Lakes Ledger reporters cover. She has been instrumental in making sure the content on the site is clear and accurate for our readers. If you see a particularly clever title, you can likely thank Anna. Anna received a BA and and MA from Fordham University.