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10 Things Smaller Than The Wilkins Ice Shelf Print E-mail
Written by Dave, Rob, Samantha and Charlie   
Friday, 28 March 2008

Yesterday we told you about the rather large chunk of ice that broke off of the Wilkins Ice Shelf in Western Antarctica this month. The new ice cube now floating (and melting) in the South Pacific measures in at a healthy 160 square miles, or nearly three times the size of Liechtenstein.

But it turns out this collapse might be just the, uh, tip of the iceberg. Scientists say the entire Wilkins Ice Shelf is in danger of breaking off at any moment. Such an event would be quite a big deal, as the shelf has an area of 5,282 square miles. That number doesn't mean much to us by itself, so we went searching for some context.

Here, in no particular order, are 10 things smaller than the Wilkins Ice Shelf:

  1. Delaware (2,489 square miles)
  2. Everglades National Park (2,357 square miles)
  3. Jamaica (4,243 square miles): They could probably use some of that ice.
  4. Yellowstone National Park (3,468 square miles)
  5. Rhode Island (1,545 square miles): Though to be fair, there are people in Alaska with backyards larger than the Ocean State.
  6. Ghawar Oil Field (3,243 square miles): Yes, there is an oil field in Saudi Arabia that's larger than Delaware.
  7. Puerto Rico (3,515 square miles)
  8. The Falkland Islands (4,700 square miles)
  9. 81 Districts of Columbia (68.3 square miles)
  10. Los Angeles County (4,752 square miles): Which, with its population of 10 million people, answers the question, "How many people could live on the Wilkins Ice Shelf?"
Comments
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John Doe - Pluralization   | 74.243.6.xxx | 2008-03-28 17:25:31
So, I'm the jerk.

Great list, folks, but there's one thing I have to mention. Number 9 should read: "81 Districts of Columbia"

Cheers!
cskgtysd - cskgtysd     | 91.121.26.xxx | 2008-08-09 19:33:01
sdomfybi http://vyhipcra.com iwcsaooz plcbjxib dfhyqjzu knogydah
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