The Great American Lakes are an important transportation route, especially for shipping metal ores and coal. Each winter, several icebreakers keep the waterways free of ice. 1)
The largest iceberg ever recorded, designated B-15, formed in April 2000. At the time of its formation, it was 275 km long and 40 km wide, and its area was about 11,000 km². The country most comparable in terms of area is Jamaica. Parts of it are still drifting around Antarctica. 2)
Ice formed from pure water at normal atmospheric pressure has about 8.3 percent less density than liquid water. Consequently, ice floats on the surface of the water. 3)
Lambert Glacier in East Antarctica is listed in the Guinness World Records as the largest glacier in the world. It is over 250 miles long and covers an area of 386,100 square miles. The glacier is an important site for climate change studies, most of which are done by remote sensing, due to the harsh conditions in the area. 4)
Blue ice deposits are formed in the depths of the ice sheet by repeated, slow thawing and refreezing of water without refractive additives (bubbles, cracks). In Greenland's environment, this process takes 100-150 years. 5)