A massive iceberg is about to collide with a floating glacier near Antarctica. They describe it as a "clash of the titans".

From: NASA: Slow-Motion Collision Near McMurdo Imminent

It is an event so large that the best seat in the house is in space: a massive iceberg is on a collision course with a floating glacier near the McMurdo Research Station in Antarctica. NASA satellites have witnessed the 100-mile-long B-15A iceberg moving steadily towards the Drygalski Ice Tongue. Though the iceberg's pace has slowed in recent days, NASA scientists expect a collision to occur no later than January 15, 2005.

"It's a clash of the titans, a radical and uncommon event," says Robert Bindshadler, a researcher at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, and if the two giant slabs of ice collide, we could see one of the best demolition derbies on the planet. "Even a 'tap' from a giant can be powerful. It will certainly be a blow far larger than anything else the ice tongue has ever experienced," says Bindshadler.

When the iceberg and the ice tongue collide, the impact will likely "dent their bumpers," says Bindshadler. The edges could crumple and ice could pile or drift into the Ross Sea. But if the B-15A iceberg picks up enough speed before the two collide, the results could be more spectacular. The Drygalski Ice Tongue could break off.

From: Scientists Watch for Antarctic Iceberg Collision

"There is no guarantee there will be any collision, or it could be catastrophic in terms of having quite big consequences"

Scientists were now eagerly watching to see what would happen if the iceberg and glacier collide.

"This is the biggest thing we've seen for a while"

In total, Cockrem estimates that about 50,000 breeding pairs at two rookeries are affected. But, he points out, that's less than 2 per cent of the adult Adelie population of more than five million penguins.

"People have asked: `Should we be doing something about it? Should we be helping the penguins?'

"As a penguin biologist, I would say no, we certainly shouldn't." he says. "We're observers of natural phenomenon."