The world's largest known iceberg, A23a, is rapidly disintegrating according to satellite images after leaving the Antarctic ice shelf nearly 40 years ago. Researchers predict that it may shrink to unrecognizable size within a few weeks. CNN recently reported, citing the UK Antarctic Survey, that the giant iceberg A23a is rapidly breaking down into "several large pieces" due to the influence of warm seawater. Earlier this year, A23a covered an area of 3672 square kilometers and weighed nearly 1 trillion tons, ranking first among giant icebergs in size. According to Agence France Presse, the analysis of images from the European Union's Earth observation project "Copernicus" satellite shows that the current size of A23a is more than half smaller than before, but it still covers an area of 1770 square kilometers, with a maximum width of 60 kilometers. Since its separation from the Filchner Ice Shelf in Antarctica in 1986, the A23a iceberg has been stranded in the Weddell Sea for over 30 years due to being stuck on the seabed. Later, it began moving northward around 2020 due to melting ice and other factors. In March of this year, A23a stayed in the waters near South Georgia Island in the South Atlantic, and scientists were concerned that it might collide with the island, posing a threat to the survival of animals such as penguins and seals. In May of this year, this iceberg moved again and drifted northward. In recent weeks, the drifting speed of A23a has significantly increased, sometimes drifting up to 20 kilometers per day. Researchers predict that as spring arrives in the southern hemisphere and seawater continues to warm, A23a may rapidly decompose into smaller and smaller parts. Andrew Myers, an oceanographer at the British Antarctic Survey, predicts that A23a may continue to disintegrate and become unrecognizable in the coming weeks. (New Society)