Iceberg stability — An error analysis

Towing icebergs to protect offshore drilling operations in iceberg rich waters is a constant problem for oil companies. Unstable icebergs are especially problematical, being notoriously difficult to tow. Evidently being able to detect potentially unstable icebergs would be beneficial. In this paper, the authors consider the possibility of using underwater sonar mapping techniques to determine the geometry of the iceberg and thence its stability characteristics. The question as to whether or not that might be performed sufficiently accurately to be able to detect the effect of a 100 t pull on an iceberg is considered. Using a simple ‘Monte Carlo’ error model it is shown that such a determination of an iceberg's stability is unlikely to be acheived except possibly for sufficiently small icebergs.