Glacier ice and sea ice, Antarctic Peninsula

Unlike the Arctic, which at its center is an ocean, Antarctica is a landmass that is surrounded by the Southern Ocean. A permanent, massive ice sheet on Antarctica covers 98% of the continent and is containing the major freshwater reserves of the globe. Moving permanently towards the coasts, these ice masses, when gliding over the continental shelf, form huge flat areas of continental shelf ice, of which enormous icebergs can calve into the sea.