Iceberg the size of Singapore could threaten shipping lanes

A 270-square-mile iceberg that broke off of the Antarctic ice sheet in July has started to drift toward open waters, and now researchers are concerned that it could threaten commercial shipping lanes in the South Atlantic.

In an attempt to mitigate the danger, the U.K.'s National Environment Research Council (NERC) just awarded an emergency grant to a group of British researchers who will track the iceberg.

The iceberg -- which is about the size of Singapore -- does not pose any environmental threats, study co-lead Grant Bigg of the University of Sheffield's Department of Geography said in a statement.

This is the third giant iceberg to break off of the Pine Island Glacier since 2001. The glacier is one of Antarctica's largest and fastest moving ice streams.

Even if the iceberg does not make its way to the South Atlantic, there are other concerns.

"If the iceberg stays around the Antarctic coast, it will melt slowly and will eventually add a lot of freshwater that stays in the coastal current, altering the density and affecting the speed of the current," Bigg explained. "Similarly, if it moves north it will melt faster but could alter the overturning rates of the current as it may create a cap of freshwater above the denser seawater."

That buildup of freshwater would not be enough, on its own, to cause a major environmental impact. But if these events continue, there could be long-lasting effects.

The roughly $80,000 grant will support the researchers for six months as they study the path and melting rate of the glacier.