Posted by
Aaron McLucas on Sunday, May 11, 2008 12:38:32 PM
A surge in the number of icebergs off Newfoundland has imperilled marine traffic and added work for the flight crews who monitor offshore.
About 600 icebergs are currently on the Grand Banks, roughly double the total all last year, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. Two years ago, the area had virtually none.
And the "sheer number" of bergs this spring in the area near the oil rigs has left spotters "very busy," Luc Desjardins, senior ice and iceberg forecaster with the Canadian Ice Service, said from Ottawa in a telephone interview this week.
During the worst of the iceberg season, which typically runs from February to July, the International Ice Patrol and a private company contracted by the Canadian Ice Service monitor the area off Newfoundland.
Interesting iceberg info at the end of the article as well.