Mertz Glacier, before the "calving". Photo credit: Jacques Verron

Scientists are concerned that a massive chunk of ice roughly the size of Luxembourg, formerly attached to eastern Antarctica, is currently loose in the Antarctic and poised to wreak havoc in the world’s oceans.

The Associated Press reported today that scientists in France and Australia are worried that the new iceberg, which was created after another large iceberg, around 60 miles long, struck the floating Mertz Glacier, may lower the levels of oxygen in oceans around the world.

The reason is a little complicated: According to The Associated Press, scientists are worried about the “effect of the massive displacement of ice on the ice-free water next to the glacier, which is important for ocean currents…. With part of the glacier gone, the area could fill with sea ice, which would disrupt the ability for the dense and cold water to sink. This sinking water is what spills into ocean basins and feeds the global ocean currents with oxygen… As there are only a few areas in the world where this occurs, a slowing of the process would mean less oxygen supplied into the deep currents that feed the oceans.”

Moreover, the BBC reported, the new iceberg could have major consequences for the region’s emperor penguins, forcing them to travel farther distances for food.