CIMSS Satellite Blog

According to the National Snow and Ice Data Center, a large portion of the Wilkins Ice Shelf in the Antarctic (map) began to collapse during late February and early March 2008. A Terra MODIS visible image (above; courtesy of Shelley Knuth, SSEC Antarctic Meteorological Research Center) shows the extent of ice shelf disintegration on 10 March 2008.

The latest real-time IR satellite composite and Antarctic synoptic analysis chart from the SSEC AMRC is shown below.

SSEC/AMRC co-investigator Matt Lazzara was down in Antarctica in January (don’t worry, it was summer down there at the time) heping to install a new Automated Weather Station (AWS) on the Ross Ice Shelf. He sent a nice Terra MODIS visible channel image that they received at McMurdo Station (above), as well as a photo of the actual weather station after installation (below).