If you need more evidence of global warming, perhaps you should look at Antarctica, where a bridge holding the Wilkins Ice Shelf to the continent broke away this weekend.

The collapse of the bridge, which was about the size of Jamaica, has scientists worried that the Ice Shelf will soon break away completely. Scientists say the collapse could mean the Wilkins Ice Shelf is on the brink of breaking away, and provides further evidence of rapid change in the region.

The USGS report, which has been created in collaboration with the British Antarctic Survey is the first that has been studying the Antarctica coastline. In the light of global warming and climate change, there was some expectation for bad news, but the actual report is certainly much more dramatic than anticipated. Over the past 50 years, the peninsula has been one of the fastest warming places on the planet.

The fact that it’s retreating and now has lost connection with one of its islands is really a strong indication that the warming on the Antarctic is having an effect on yet another ice shelf. Not only are Antarctica’s glaciers melting more rapidly than previously known, but one ice shelf, the Wordie Ice Shelf, has disappeared completely. Another, the Larsen Ice Shelf, has lost its entire northern portion, a chunk three times the size of Rhode Island, in the space of 23 years.

The bridge’s collapse won’t greatly impact sea levels, but definitely provides a warning of how dire the situation down south has become. The results raised attention, as Antarctica is the earth’s largest reservoir of glacial ice, holding an estimated 91% of the planet’s glacier volume.

While the break-up will have no direct impact on sea level because the ice is floating, it heightens concerns over the impact of climate change on this part of Antarctica.

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