A few months back I posted an article on a large crack in one of the Antarctic ice shelves called Larsen C that appeared to be expanding and was in the process of breaking off a large iceberg the size of the state of Delaware.  Today I noticed a couple of articles updating us on the status of the crack.  I was surprised and dismayed to find that the crack has extended significantly since the last article I wrote about and that the length of ice left is probably only going to last for a month or so before the crack completes its route and the iceberg is launched.  It has grown 11 miles since December 1 and there is only 12 more miles to go before the chunk of ice breaks completely free.

Fortunately, since it is a floating ice shelf, it will not immediately change the sea level, but once removed, it may make the ice coming off of Antarctica stream off the continent more quickly, leading to a rise in sea level as the land-based ice enters the ocean.  You can read more about it in the Washington Post here and PBS here and see some pictures of the incredible crack.