BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA - A HUGE ice dam on Argentina's Perito Moreno glacier will break apart for the first time in the southern hemisphere winter, likely as a result of global warming, scientists and environmentalists said on Monday.

The 60-meter high wall of ice holding back a portion of Lake Argentina breaks apart spectacularly in cycles of one year to several years, but always in summer, and is one of Patagonia's top tourist attractions.

'This is the first time the glacier breaks up in winter. It could be related to global warming as rising temperatures affects ice friction,' said Los Glaciares National Park director Mr Carlos Corvalan.

The Perito Moreno glacier, one of the world's largest, measuring 275 square kilometers and five kilometers wide at its mouth, is located 2,800 kilometers southeast of Buenos Aires. -- AFP