Ice island survives run-in with Joe Island
Summer is prime iceberg season in Greenland's glacier-fed fjords, and 2026 was no exception. Especially notable was the berg that broke from Petermann Glacier along Greenland's northwest coast in August. Roughly the size of St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands, it was the largest calving event by any Arctic glacier since 2020.
On August 4, 2026, a massive iceberg, roughly the size of St. Thomas, broke off from Petermann Glacier in Greenland's northwest coast. This was the largest calving event by any Arctic glacier since 2020. Iceberg calving, a natural part of a glacier's lifecycle, was closely monitored by scientists due to its potential implications for sea level rise.
The calving was observed by Adam Garbo, a glaciology doctoral student from the University of Ottawa, using imagery from the European Space Agency's Sentinel-1 mission. Garbo and his team reported that the ice island measured over 29 square miles at the time of its calving, making it the largest since the 2012 event. However, they had expected a larger calving based on recent rift monitoring.
The subsequent week, the iceberg drifted through Petermann Fjord and collided with Joe Island, a small rocky outcrop located at the mouth of the fjord, without breaking apart. Despite the brief encounter, the ice island remained intact and continued southwest into Nares Strait.
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- Ice Island Survives Run-In With Joe Island science.nasa.gov
