World's Biggest Iceberg Begins Moving After 37 Years

The world's biggest iceberg — which is roughly three times the size of New York City — is "on the move" after being stuck to the ocean floor for 37 years, scientists confirmed Friday.

Recent satellite images show the iceberg, called A23a, is now moving past the northern tip of the Antarctic Peninsula and headed toward the Southern Ocean, according to the British Antarctic Survey.

The iceberg, which spans almost 4,000 square kilometers (or 1,500 square miles) in area, split from the Antarctic coastline in 1986, but then became grounded in the Weddell Sea, the BBC reported.

The British Antarctic Survey on Friday posted a time-lapse of satellite imagery, showing the iceberg's movement.

"Here's its journey out of the Weddell Sea after being grounded on the sea floor after calving in August 1986," the survey wrote.

Before its calving in 1986, the colossal iceberg hosted a Soviet research station. It's unclear why the iceberg is suddenly on the move again after 37 years.

According to Dr. Andrew Fleming, a remote sensing expert from the British Antarctic Survey, the time had come for iceberg A23a to break free. It had been grounded since 1986, but eventually, it was going to decrease in size enough to start moving. This movement will likely take A23a into the Antarctic Circumpolar Current, also known as "iceberg alley," where it will join other drifting icebergs. This current is the same one that Ernest Shackleton used in 1916 to escape from Antarctica after losing his ship, the Endurance. A23a's movement comes about 10 months after a massive piece of Antarctica's Brunt Ice Shelf broke free. Last year, the Larsen C ice shelf, which was roughly the size of New York City, also collapsed into the sea.