Question

In 1987, a gargantuan iceberg broke away from the Ross Ice Sheet in Antarctica. It was approximately a rectangle with dimensions 154 km long, 35.0 km wide, and 250.0 m thick.

What is the mass of this iceberg, given that the density of ice is 917 kg/m3?

m=

kg

How much heat transfer in joules is needed to melt the iceberg?

Q=

How many years would it take sunlight alone to melt ice this thick if the ice absorbs an average of 113 W/m2, 12.0 h per day?

t=

Answer 1

A)

Density, p = m/V

917 = m/(154000 x 35000 x 250)

Mass, m = 1.24 x 10^15 kg

B)

Heat, Q = mL

Q = 1.24 x 10^15 x 333.55 = 411.9 x 10^18 J

C)

Energy, E = Pt

411.9 x 10^18 = 154000 x 35000 x 113 x 12 x 365 x 3600t

Time, t = 42.89 yrs

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