Giant iceberg the size of London breaks off Antarctic ice sheet. And this is the second such separation that has occurred in the past two years, according to Science Alert..

The British Antarctic Survey notes that the formation of the iceberg was the result of a natural process and is not related to climate change.. The area of \u200b\u200bthe detached block of ice is estimated at 1,550 square kilometers..

[see_also ids\u003d"

Scientists noticed the first signs of iceberg separation 10 years ago, so its formation did not come as a surprise.. A similar process, which was accompanied by the detachment of an iceberg with an area of \u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b1270 square kilometers, occurred about a year ago..

UK research station Halley VI monitors floating ice shelf daily. The last break happened not far from her, but did not bring any harm..

In 2016-2017, the mobile research base was moved inland for safety reasons as cracks in the ice threatened to cut it off..

Since then, personnel have been deployed only during the Antarctic summer from November to March, and there are currently 21 researchers on site.. They are to be picked up by helicopter on February 6.

Previously, scientists found that Antarctica experienced ice ages much more often than thought. This was indicated by the analysis of sedimentary rocks collected on the continent.