Svalbard Glacier Calving — Kongsfjorden Ice Face
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A calving event at the tidewater face of a Svalbard glacier — a 20-metre section of 800-year-old ice separating from the glacier front and entering the Arctic Ocean in an explosion of white spray and churning serac fragments.
Description
Glacier calving photography requires close-approach positioning by research vessel within the safety exclusion zone of active tidewater glacier fronts — the falling ice and resulting wave action present real hazard at close range. This image was made from a Zodiac inflatable approximately 200 metres from the calving face of the Kronebreen glacier in Kongsfjorden, Svalbard, during the active summer calving season when warming sea temperatures undercut the glacier front and accelerate calving frequency. The 20-metre serac section captured in mid-fall is already partially shattered, ice fragments in free fall around the main block as it impacts the ocean surface. The explosion of white spray is 15 metres high. Shot at 1/3200 second on a 200mm telephoto from a pitching Zodiac, the image required continuous burst shooting at 20fps to capture the precise second of maximum spray.
