Since glacier ice is formed from falling snow and snow results from condensed water vapor in the atmosphere, the water from icebergs is quite pure. Sometimes airborne dust from volcanic eruptions or from the wind is deposited on the surface of a glacier and gradually becomes trapped within the ice so that traces are found in icebergs.

Where do icebergs come from?

A majority of the icebergs in the North Atlantic come from about 100 iceberg producing glaciers along the Greenland coast while a few originate in the Eastern Canadian Arctic Islands. The glaciers of western Greenland, where 90% of Newfoundland's icebergs originate, are amongst the fastest moving in the world, up to 7 km per year. The icebergs we see off Newfoundland are carried south in the cold Labrador current.

How many icebergs are there?

Approximately 40,000 medium to large sized icebergs calve annually in Greenland and about 1 to 2% (400-800) of those make it as far south as 48o north latitude (St. John's). The numbers vary greatly from year to year and seasonally as most are seen off Newfoundland in the spring and early summer.

How old are icebergs?

The icebergs that reach the east coast of Newfoundland probably calved from a glacier more than a year before. They often spend a year or more in cold arctic bays melting slowly (or not a ...more

Glacier ice is formed from falling snow and snow results from condensed water vapor in the atmosphere, the water from icebergs is quite pure. Sometimes airborne dust from volcanic eruptions or from the wind is deposited on the surface of a glacier and gradually becomes trapped within the ice so that traces are found in icebergs.