Key Facts about Ross Ice Shelf

About Ross Ice Shelf:

• It is the largest ice shelf of Antarctica. It is situated in the Ross Sea, extending off the continent’s coast into the ocean.
• It is the world’s largest floating body of ice, covering approximately 487,000 square kilometres, about the size of France.
• Only ten percent of the ice shelf is visible, with the majority hidden in several hundred metres of ice below the surface.
• Its thickness varies significantly, ranging from about 100 meters to several hundred meters. The thickest parts are generally found where the shelf anchors against the continent.
• Formation:
  • It is formed by the accumulation and compaction of snow, which, over time, turns into ice.
  • It is being fed a constant flow of ice from glaciers draining from both the East and West Antarctic Ice Sheets.
  • As new ice is added, existing ice is being removed through melting at the base and ice calving at the front. 
• It plays an important role in stabilising the Antarctic ice sheet, buttressing the ice that is constantly moving over the land surface.  

Key Facts about Ross Sea:

• It is a giant bay just 320 kms from the South Pole. The sea is remote and positioned south and slightly east of New Zealand. It is the largest polar marine ecosystem in the world. It is relatively shallow.
• It is strongly influenced by the coastal East-Wind Drift that sets up a vast clockwise gyre accompanied by deepwater upwelling. 
• It is the first protected area in Antarctica and home to most of the world’s penguins and many species of whale. Numerous scientific research stations are located along its coasts.