NASA Satellite Captures Heartbreaking Visuals of the World’s Largest Iceberg’s ‘Imminent Demise’
Humans across the planet are saddened as they bid farewell to A-23A, once hailed as the “world’s largest iceberg.” After traversing a long, treacherous journey from Antarctica through the South Atlantic Ocean, crossing many obstacles in its path, the ice giant is now crumbling, collapsing, and breaking apart with each passing moment. In the coming months, as the arrival of spring starts weakening the ice of the Southern Hemisphere, A-23A will count its final moments, ultimately destined to disintegrate and dissolve into the warm currents of the ocean. In a recent press release by NASA, an image of the dying iceberg was shared, reflecting upon the majestic and heroic journey it navigated during 38 years of its life.
According to NASA Earth Observatory, the image, dated September 11, 2025, was captured by MODIS, short for Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer, attached to NASA’s Terra Satellite. The image displays A-23A disintegrating into several large blocks that seem to be splashing crumbs of icy particles in the blue ocean expanse as they split apart. “This breakup is notable, however, as it signals the imminent demise of one enormous, long-lived berg,” the space agency lamented in the press release.
Much like the hero of a movie, the story of this trillion-tonne iceberg started on a happy note. Once upon a time, it was a towering giant, greater in size than giants like Rhode Island and even London. Spanning almost 1,062 miles, A-23A sat in its cool Antarctic home for a few years. Then, in 1986, tragedy befell, triggered by the human-caused global warming. The iceberg detached from Antarctica’s Filchner Ice Shelf and started drifting north towards the South Atlantic, losing almost two-thirds of its body during this period.
After reaching the Weddell Sea, the iceberg displayed a strange behavior. Unlike most icebergs that would melt or disintegrate in the warming waters of the sea, A-23A grounded itself firmly on the seabed and remained stuck there for several decades. It stood there, unflinchingly, until another heat wave rushed through the currents of the sea in 2020. At this point, the heat became too much for A-23A to bear anymore, so it wiggled itself loose from the icy bed and started its journey towards the Southern Ocean.
After this episode, around March 2024, it finally broke free from the shelf and began plodding towards the South Orkney Islands. The waters here posed a tragic obstacle that altered the very pathway of A-23A’s life. Here, A-23A got trapped in an ocean vortex called “Taylor column.” An underwater mountain sitting on the sea floor triggered this vigorous vortex of currents that sent the water above to rotate in columns. And like a cloth caught in the whirlpool of a washing machine, A-23A found itself spinning in this vortex.
The megaberg remained trapped and imprisoned in this vortex along the Drake Passage for the next few months. It was in May 2025 that it was finally able to break free from the spinning dance. But then, it dragged itself out of the vortex, only to become trapped again in the shallow coastal shelf south of South Georgia Island. After remaining lodged in the ice shelf, the exhausted iceberg finally shattered and broke apart. Currently, its two fragments - the 125-square-mile A-23G and the 133-square-mile A-23I - are floating in the water. With the onset of summer in the Southern Hemisphere, they will eventually perish. The disheartening demise calls forth scientists to deepen their investigation of the seafloors and what lies deep within. As for now, all we can say is, A23-A, may you rest in peace.
More on Green Matters
‘World’s Largest Iceberg’ Is Breaking Up After 40 Years — and It’s Only Going to Get Worse
World’s Biggest Iceberg From Antarctica Is on the Move — and It’s Not Good News for Australians
NASA Captures a Bizarre 130-Foot-Tall Iceberg in Antarctica That's Almost a Perfect Rectangle