In Canada Newfoundland and Labrador is known for the towering icebergs. Separated from Greenland, these ice mountains may soon meltdown after 10,000 years providing stunning scenery.
For tourists, the ice mountains are a stark visual reminder of the planet’s changing climate and rapidly melting glaciers.
A local tour operator noticed an increase in iceberg tourism over the last few years as people wanted to experience this opportunity before everything will be lost due to climate change.
The number of icebergs visible from land depends on many factors independent from climate change, such as wind patterns and linked to the warming climate.
While icebergs may be an attractive tourism boon, more multi-year ice coming south is a “very dangerous” sign for ocean industries.
The International Ice Patrol has assessed 2019 as an “extreme year” for icebergs on the east coast, in the top 10 percent of years tracked, the department said.
As of June 11, 1,494 icebergs had drifted south into transatlantic shipping lanes south of 48 degrees north, compared to a yearly average of 713, classifying 2019 as the tenth most severe year on record since 1900.
