AI maps 39,619 Antarctic icebergs forming ‘picket fence’ that holds sea ice

Around Antarctica, thousands of icebergs are not drifting through the Southern Ocean. They are resting on the seafloor, anchored in shallow coastal waters and quietly influencing the movement of sea ice. For the first time, scientists have used artificial intelligence and satellite radar imagery to map this hidden population across the entire Antarctic coastline. The result is a continent wide dataset containing 39,619 grounded icebergs, most of them far smaller than the giant icebergs that dominate news photographs. About 93 percent measure less than 1 square kilometre, yet these small icebergs collectively help form what researchers call a “picket fence effect,” holding landfast sea ice in place. As reported by Phys.org, the discovery provides a new baseline for understanding Antarctic ice stability, marine ecosystems and the effects of a warming ocean.