March 02, 2005, Washington D.C.-- Two icebergs have calved from the Drygalski Ice Tongue in Antarctica's Ross Sea. The Drygalski Ice Tongue, an extension of the Davis Glacier, is the largest ice tongue in the Ross Sea.

The icebergs do not meet the standard size criteria for naming and tracking by the National Ice Center, but due to recent scientific and public interest in the area due to the movement of B15A, it is worthy of recognition. Although not believed related to the movement of B-15A, this calving is another exciting change in the Antarctic environment.

Aerographer's Mate Gary J. Premo identified the icebergs on Defense Metereological Satellite Program (DMSP) Operational Line Scan (OLS) Visible imagery from 26 February 2005. Figure 1 clearly shows the icebergs just north of Drygalski. The actual calving is believed to have occurred sometime between the 21st and 23rd of February 2005.

The larger berg is centered at 75.13S / 165.10E and measures 6 NM on its longest axis. The smaller of the two icebergs is centered at 75.19S / 164.59E and measures only 3 NM on its longest axis.

The National Ice Center is a tri-agency operational center represented by the United States Navy (Department of Defense), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Department of Commerce), and the United States Coast Guard (Department of Homeland Security). The National Ice Center mission is to provide worldwide operational ice analyses for the armed forces of the United States and allied nations, U.S. government agencies, and the private sector.

For more information, please contact:
National Ice Center
Naval Ice Center
Liaison Branch
Voice: 301-394-3100
E-mail: liaison@natice.noaa.gov