A Giant Ice Island Threatening

An island of ice covering an area of ​​260 km2, five times the size of Central Jakarta, which is separated from the Petermann glacier, Greenland, across the Arctic Ocean, you can imagine, if the entire Greenland ice melted, could raise the water level by 6 meters. North Jakarta could be submerged if the sea level rise of 2-3 meters.

Ice island was "swimming" in the Arctic Ocean was soon to enter remote place called the Nares Strait, about 620 km south of the Arctic, which separates Greenland and Ellsemere Island, Canada. In the worst case scenario, a giant chunk of ice could have reached the waters where the ship traveled Greenland ice blocks similar in 1912 destroyed the Titanic.

"The island is very large ice making it impossible to stop it," said Hon Methie-Ove Hagen, glasiologis from the University of Oslo.

If the island of ice as thick as the Empire State Building in New York is entering the Nares Strait before the winter freeze (next month), cross-ship around Canada will be disturbed. And, if the giant chunks of ice flowing into the south due to current driven, and reached the east coast of Canada, the busy waters, sending oil from Newfoundland will be disrupted.

Island ice is very dangerous for the Grand Banks oil platforms off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada. "From where could be the starting point of a major disaster," said Mark Drinkwater of the European Space Agency.

Thrust ice island was very strong, to sweep offshore oil platforms and ships in front of him. The resulting collision can cause severe damage. If the ice melts, the potential to raise global sea levels as high as 20 feet or 6 meters!

Ice island was first seen via satellite by an astrologer ice from Canada, Tudy Wohllenben, Thursday (08/05/2010). Discharge of fresh water when ice melts it could supply the water needs for all people in the United States for 120 days or four months.

Canadian Ice Service estimates, the rate of ice blocks take one or two years to reach the east coast of Canada. It might also be broken into small pieces due to hit an iceberg, and coral islands. Lumps it will also collapse or melt due to wind and waves. "But it blocks the breakdown products is quite large," said Trudy Wohllenben.

Reuters reports, the incident loss of ice from glaciers Petermann Island, North Pole, this is the greatest natural phenomena in the next 28 years. The last occurred in 1962 when the Ward Hunt Ice Shelf, Greendland, forming an island.

U.S. scientists say, it is difficult to claim that a giant ice shelf collapse due to global warming because the records of sea water around the glacier was stored since 2003. The flow of sea water beneath the glacier is a major cause loss of ice from Petermann Island, Greenland.