The Problem Of Huge Icebergs

By Author: asdfas
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For some years, there has been a plan to solve the water shortage problem by moving huge icebergs halfway round the world — from the Antarctic Ocean to arid regions such as the north of Mexico, California, Arabia or parts of Africa. The plan has never been implemented, however, because of the great cost involved in using giant tugboats to move the icebergs.
The solution to this problem of cost -would be to make self-propelled icebergs, thus re-moving the need for ships and expensive fuel. The iceberg would be its own tugboat. 1 his is how it would work: liquid Freon is pumped under high pressure into heat exchangers sub-merged in the water. As the freon leaves the iceberg (temperature: 32°!'') and comes into contact with the water (temperature 50°F~52°F), it turns into gas and expands rapidly. As it does so, it turns turbines which drive the propellers. The Freon is then returned to the iceberg where it liquefies and goes through the process again.
The plan is then as follows. A ship would sail to the Antarctic and select an iceberg 2 miles wide, 5 miles long and about 1 000 feet thick. A crew of ...
... 40 to 50 people would then bring the iceberg to where it is needed. They would live in special quarters, heated by solar energy. Helicopters would bring equipment, supplies and food. When the "engine" was in place, the iceberg would travel at about one and a half knots, although in a favorable current, it would move two or three times as fast. The Humboldt Current, for example, off the coast of South America could bring icebergs from the Antarctic to the coast of Mexico or California.
The next problem is what to do with it when it arrives at its destination. Lying off the coast of some dry area, the iceberg would be enclosed in an enormous plastic cocoon, open on the top and the bottom but enclosing all the sides. This -would prevent the iceberg from floating away and also enables the fresh water to be piped off the top as it melts. The iceberg would take about a year to melt .
The cost of this operation is estimated at about $ 65 million for the first iceberg and $ 15 million for subsequent ones because the equipment can be used again. The operation is therefore worth considering because at 2 miles by 5 miles by one thousand feet iceberg holds a trillion gallons of water, worth about $ 200 million at today's prices.