More Canadian Ice Sheets Break Loose, Float Away

September 3, 2008 6:51 p.m. EST

Ottawa, Ontario (AHN) - Two ice shelves in Canada lost massive portions to the Arctic Ocean in August, researchers revealed on Tuesday.

The massive pieces from the 19-square-mile Markham shelf on the northern coast of Ellesmere Island and from the Serson shelf have joined remnants of the Ward Hunt ice shelf that broke loose and floated away in July.

The latest ice collapses make for a total 83 square miles of shelf ice lost this summer, according to Dr. Derek Mueller, the Roberta Bondar Fellow in Northern and Polar Studies at Trent University in Peterborough, Ontario. He said the breaks were caused by global warming.

The floating ice sheets pose danger to navigators in Canada's arctic waters, the researcher said.