[4] With a surface area of 5,800 square kilometres (2,200 sq mi), twice the size of Luxembourg, over a quarter the size of Wales, and larger than Delaware,[5] it was one of the largest recorded icebergs, the largest being B-15 which measured 11,000 square kilometres (4,200 sq mi) before breaking up.

[10] Post November 2017, satellite images showed that A-68 was slowly drifting northward, with a widening gap to the main shelf.

The gap was approximately five kilometers (3.1 miles) wide and contained a thin layer of loose, floating ice and a cluster of more than 11 'smaller' bergs, one much larger than the others.

[citation needed] A British expedition on RRS James Clark Ross intended to sample the marine life at the A-68 cleavage line in March 2018, but had to turn back due to thick sea ice.

A spokesman from the British Antarctic Survey stated that the iceberg could become stuck for a number of years, causing disruption to wildlife and the local fishing industry.

[17] As of 17 December 2020[update], a part of the iceberg was just 50 km (31 mi) from South Georgia, but the concern seemed to have lessened.

National Geographic reported that "[s]cientists expect the iceberg ... to either anchor in the shallow waters around the island or move past it in the coming days.

[21] A modeling study demonstrated that this break-up was likely triggered when part of A-68A became positioned within stronger ocean currents than the rest of the berg, generating enough tension along its body to break it into pieces.

[25][26] On 15 February 2021, it was reported that British scientists had arrived at the remnants of A-68A, and had deployed a robotic glider to measure seawater salinity, temperature and chlorophyll close to the remaining blocks of ice to ascertain effects on local marine life.