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PHOTO GALLERY: Greenland, July 2007

Last updated on 11/05/2007

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Illulissat Harbor, on Greenland's West Coast

Illulissat Harbor, on Greenland's West Coast
Ilulissat Harbor, on Greenland’s West Coast. Arkalo Abelsen, Greenland’s environment minister, told us that in the past, this harbor routinely froze from December through May, but that in recent years, ice forms in March and lasts only a few weeks.

The village of Ilulissat, Greenland Ilulissat, which is also known as Jakobshavn, is home to about 4,500 people -- and at least 4,000 sled dogs.

The village of Illulissat, Greenland
The Ilulissat Icefjord is five miles across and is clogged with ice calved from a glacier that drains the massive Greenland Ice Sheet – itself 500 by 1200 miles, and more than 10,000 feet thick at its thickest point. A century ago, this spot sat at the edge of the ice.

The Illulissat Icefjord
The icebergs in the foreground have broken off of the Jakobshavn glacier, visible in the distance. The glacier itself has retreated 7 miles in the past ten years. Nine tenths of an iceberg’s mass is underwater – you can see some of the underwater portion of the nearest icebergs in this photo.

Icebergs broken off of the Jakobshavn glacier
Ilulissat Harbor, on Greenland’s West Coast. Arkalo Abelsen, Greenland’s environment minister, told us that in the past, this harbor routinely froze from December through May, but that in recent years, ice forms in March and lasts only a few weeks.

Illulissat Harbor, on Greenland's West Coast


Icebergs under the midnight sun near Illulissat, Greenland
Icebergs, calved from the Jakobshavn glacier, clog the icefjord. It can take much of a year for ice to make its way from the glacier to the sea.

Icebergs, calved from the Jakobshavn glacier


Icebergs viewed from Illulissat, Greenland
Eventually, waves and melting break up large icebergs into smaller and smaller bits.

Waves and melting break icebergs into smaller and smaller bits
This image shows just how big the icebergs in Disko Bay are – and roughly 90 percent of their size is underwater.

Icebergs and boat in Disko Bay
Dr. Richard Alley briefs Senator Barbara Boxer while observing icebergs in Disko Bay, near Ilullisat, Greenland.

Dr. Richard Alley briefs Senator Boxer
Icebergs in the Kangia Icefjord, Greenland. The glacier feeding the icefjord is among the world’s fastest-moving, and has doubled its speed in the past two decades.

Icebergs in the Kangia Icefjord, Greenland


Illulisat

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