Mount Terra Nova

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Mount Terra Nova
1-33terranova.jpg
c. 1922 panorama. Hut Point Peninsula (foreground), Mount Erebus (left), Mount Terra Nova (center) Mount Terror (right)
Highest point
Elevation 2,130 m (6,990 ft)
Geography
Geology
Volcanic belt McMurdo Volcanic Group

Mount Terra Nova ( 77°31′S167°57′E / 77.517°S 167.950°E / -77.517; 167.950 ) is a snow-covered mountain, 2,130 metres (6,990 ft) high, between Mount Erebus and Mount Terror volcanoes on Ross Island in Antarctica. It was first mapped by the British National Antarctic Expedition (BrNAE) 1901–04, and named for the Terra Nova , relief ship for this expedition and the British Antarctic Expedition, 1910–13. [1]

Contents

Location

Mount Terra Nova lies between Mount Erebus to the west and Mount Terror to the east. It is south of Lewis Bay and north of Windless Bight. The Aurora Glacier and Terror Glacier drain its southern slopes. [2]

Geology

Mount Terra Nova is a dormant volcano. [3] It is in the Erebus province of the McMurdo Volcanic Group.[ citation needed ] The blue-ice area at the summit has a diverse range of tephra. A 2014 study found seven layers: two phonolitic, one trachybasaltic, one trachytic, and two with a mixture of basanite, trachybasalt, phonolite, and trachyte glass shards. [4] Immediately below the summit there are outcrops of basalt, olivine basalt, and scoria. Most of the outcrops are covered in basalt, trachyte, and scoria glacial rubble. Lower down on the mountain there are some partially dissected vents and some flows of olivine basalt, basalt, scoria, and pyroclastics. [5]

Seismic activity

Between 1983 and 1984 a network of ten stations on Ross Island recorded 157 small earthquakes. An analysis of epicenters showed a linear pattern cutting across and beyond the island. Most of this activity was below Mount Terra Nova. The depths were from 0 to 25 kilometres (0 to 16 mi), with an average depth of 8.2 kilometres (5.1 mi). [6]

Features

Ross Island. Mount Terror is to the east RossIslandMap.jpg
Ross Island. Mount Terror is to the east

Terror Saddle

77°31′00″S168°05′00″E / 77.5166667°S 168.0833333°E / -77.5166667; 168.0833333 . One of three prominent snow saddles on Ross Island, located about 1,600 metres (5,200 ft) high between Mount Terra Nova and Mount Terror. Named in association with Mount Terror, which rises to 3,262 metres (10,702 ft) high to the east of this saddle. [7]

Oamaru Peak

77°28′00″S167°54′00″E / 77.4666667°S 167.9°E / -77.4666667; 167.9 . A peak 2 nautical miles (3.7 km; 2.3 mi) north of Mount Terra Nova. The feature rises to about 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) high 1 nautical mile (1.9 km; 1.2 mi) north of Caldwell Peak. Named by New Zealand Geographic Board (NZGB) (2000) after Oamaru, Otago, New Zealand, the port the Terra Nova first visited after the death of Captain Robert F. Scott. [8]

Caldwell Peak

77°29′00″S167°54′00″E / 77.4833333°S 167.9°E / -77.4833333; 167.9 . A peak 2 nautical miles (3.7 km; 2.3 mi) north of Mount Terra Nova. The feature rises to about 1,300 metres (4,300 ft) high 1 nautical mile (1.9 km; 1.2 mi) south of Oamaru Peak. At the suggestion of P.R. Kyle, named by United States Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names (US-ACAN) (2000) after David A. Caldwell, geologist, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, who worked two field seasons on Mount Erebus (first one, 1986-87); completed M.S. thesis on lava flows at the Mount Erebus summit. [9]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ross Island</span> Island in Ross Sea, Antarctica

Ross Island is an island in Antarctica lying on the east side of McMurdo Sound and extending 43 nautical miles from Cape Bird on the north to Cape Armitage on the south, and a like distance from Cape Royds on the west to Cape Crozier on the east. The island is entirely volcanic. Mount Erebus, 3,795 metres (12,451 ft), near the center, is an active volcano. Mount Terror, 3,230 metres (10,600 ft), about 20 nautical miles eastward, is an extinct volcano. Mount Bird rises to 1,765 metres (5,791 ft) just south of Cape Bird. Ross Island lies within the boundary of Ross Dependency, an area of Antarctica claimed by New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Erebus</span> Volcano on Ross Island, Antarctica

Mount Erebus is the second-highest volcano in Antarctica, the highest active volcano in Antarctica, and the southernmost active volcano on Earth. It is the sixth-highest peak of an island and the second most prominent mountain in Antarctica after Mount Vinson. It has a summit elevation of 3,794 metres (12,448 ft). It is located in the Ross Dependency on Ross Island, which is also home to three inactive volcanoes: Mount Terror, Mount Bird, and Mount Terra Nova. The mountain was named by Captain James Clark Ross in 1841 for his ship, HMS Erebus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Terror (Antarctica)</span> Shield volcano in Antarctica

Mount Terror is an extinct volcano about 3,230 metres (10,600 ft) high on Ross Island, Antarctica, about 20 nautical miles eastward of Mount Erebus. Mount Terror was named in 1841 by polar explorer Sir James Clark Ross for his second ship, HMS Terror. The captain of Terror was Francis Crozier, a close friend of Ross for whom the nearby Cape Crozier is named.

The Dennistoun Glacier is a glacier, 50 nautical miles long, draining the northern slopes of Mount Black Prince, Mount Royalist and Mount Adam in the Admiralty Mountains of Victoria Land, Antarctica. It flows northwest between the Lyttelton Range and Dunedin Range, turning east on rounding the latter range to enter the sea south of Cape Scott.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bowers Mountains</span> Mountain range on the coast of the East Antarctic Victoria Land

Bowers Mountains is a group of north–south trending mountains in Antarctica, about 90 nautical miles long and 35 nautical miles wide, bounded by the coast on the north and by the Rennick Glacier, Canham Glacier, Black Glacier and Lillie Glacier in other quadrants. They are west of the Usarp Mountains, north of the Freyberg Mountains, northeast of the Concord Mountains, east of the Anare Mountains.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Society Range</span> Mountain range in Antarctica

The Royal Society Range is a majestic range of mountains in Victoria Land, Antarctica, rising to 4,025 metres (13,205 ft) along the west shore of McMurdo Sound between the Koettlitz, Skelton and Ferrar Glaciers. They are south of the Kukri Hills, southeast of the Quartermain Mountains, and northeast of the Worcester Range.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White Island (Ross Archipelago)</span>

White Island is an island in the Ross Archipelago of Antarctica. It is 15 nautical miles long, protruding through the Ross Ice Shelf immediately east of Black Island. It was discovered by the British National Antarctic Expedition (1901–04) and so named by them because of the mantle of snow that covers it.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black Island (Ross Archipelago)</span> Island in the Ross Archipelago, Antarctica

Black Island, is an island in the Ross Archipelago, 12 nautical miles long, projecting through the Ross Ice Shelf to a height of 1,040 metres (3,410 ft).meters. It was discovered by the British National Antarctic Expedition and named by them for its appearance. The island is largely ice free and principally composed of black volcanic rock. The island's northernmost point is named Cape Hodgson, commemorating Thomas Vere Hodgson, one of the oldest members of the Discovery Expedition.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hut Point Peninsula</span> Landform on Ross Island, Antarctica

Hut Point Peninsula is a long, narrow peninsula from 2 to 3 nautical miles wide and 15 nautical miles long, projecting south-west from the slopes of Mount Erebus on Ross Island, Antarctica. McMurdo Station (US) and Scott Base (NZ) are Antarctic research stations located on the Hut Point Peninsula.

Mount Bird is a 1,765 metres (5,791 ft) high shield volcano standing about 7 nautical miles south of Cape Bird, the northern extremity of Ross Island. It was mapped by the British National Antarctic Expedition, 1901–04, under Robert Falcon Scott, and apparently named by them after Cape Bird.

Minna Bluff is a narrow, bold peninsula, 25 nautical miles long and 3 nautical miles wide, projecting southeast from Mount Discovery into the Ross Ice Shelf, Antarctica. It was discovered by the British National Antarctic Expedition (1901-04) which named it for Minna, the wife of Sir Clements Markham, the "father" of the expedition. It culminates in a south-pointing hook feature, and is the subject of research into Antarctic cryosphere history, funded by the National Science Foundation, Office of Polar Programs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cape Crozier</span> Headland of Antarctica

Cape Crozier is the most easterly point of Ross Island in Antarctica. It was discovered in 1841 during James Clark Ross's polar expedition of 1839 to 1843 with HMS Erebus and HMS Terror, and was named after Commander Francis Crozier, captain of HMS Terror, one of the two ships of Ross' expedition.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Lister</span> Mountain in Ross Dependency, Antarctica

Mount Lister is a massive mountain, 4,025 metres (13,205 ft) high, forming the highest point in the Royal Society Range of Victoria Land, Antarctica. It was discovered by the British National Antarctic Expedition (1901–1904) which named it for Lord Joseph Lister, President of the Royal Society, 1895–1900.

The Kyle Hills are a prominent group of volcanic cones, hills, ridges, and peaks that occupy the eastern part of Ross Island, Antarctica, between Mount Terror and Cape Crozier. The hills extend east–west for 8 nautical miles (15 km), rising from sea level at Cape Crozier to about 2,600 metres (8,500 ft) in Mount McIntosh at the western end of the group. Local relief of features is on the order of 200 metres (660 ft).

Wood Bay is a large bay which is bounded by Cape Johnson and Aviator Glacier Tongue on the north, and Cape Washington on the south, along the coast of Victoria Land, Antarctica. It was discovered in 1841 by Captain James Clark Ross, Royal Navy, and named by him for Lieutenant James F.L. Wood of the ship HMS Erebus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Windless Bight</span>

Windless Bight is a prominent bight that indens the south side of Ross Island, Antarctica, eastward of Hut Point Peninsula. It was named by the Winter Journey Party, led by Wilson, of the British Antarctic Expedition, 1910–13, which encountered no wind in this area. The bight is permanently frozen. It is the site of a station that monitors infrasound to detect violations of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty.

Barnett Glacier is a large glacier in the Anare Mountains that flows east along the south side of Tapsell Foreland into Smith Inlet, northern Victoria Land, Antarctica.

The Marshall Mountains are a group of mountains overlooking Beardmore Glacier in the Queen Alexandra Range, Antarctica. They are bounded on the north by Berwick Glacier, and on the south by Swinford Glacier.

Saint Johns Range is a crescent-shaped mountain range about 20 nautical miles long, in Victoria Land, Antarctica. It is bounded on the north by the Cotton Glacier, Miller Glacier and Debenham Glacier, and on the south by Victoria Valley and the Victoria Upper Glacier and Victoria Lower Glacier.

Lewis Bay is a bay indenting the north coast of Ross Island, Antarctica, between Mount Bird and Cape Tennyson.

References

  1. Alberts 1995, p. 739.
  2. Ross Island USGS.
  3. Hund 2014, p. 615.
  4. Iverson et al. 2014, p. 4190.
  5. Treves 1970, p. 103.
  6. Rowe & Kienle 1986, p. 375.
  7. Terror Saddle USGS.
  8. Oamaru Peak USGS.
  9. Caldwell Peak USGS.

Sources

  • Alberts, Fred G., ed. (1995), Geographic Names of the Antarctic (PDF) (2 ed.), United States Board on Geographic Names , retrieved 2024-01-30PD-icon.svg This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Board on Geographic Names.
  • "Caldwell Peak", Geographic Names Information System , United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior
  • Hund, Andrew J. (2014), Antarctica and the Arctic Circle: A Geographic Encyclopedia of the Earth's Polar Regions, Bloomsbury Publishing USA, ISBN   978-1-61069-393-6 , retrieved 2024-02-04
  • Iverson, Nels A.; Kyle, Philip R.; Dunbar, Nelia W.; McIntosh, William C.; Pearce, Nicholas J. G. (2014), "Eruptive history and magmatic stability of Erebus volcano, Antarctica: Insights from englacial tephra", Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, 15 (11): 4180–4202, doi: 10.1002/2014GC005435
  • "Oamaru Peak", Geographic Names Information System , United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior
  • Ross Island, USGS: United States Geological Survey, retrieved 2024-01-30
  • Rowe, C.A.; Kienle, J. (December 1986), "Seismicity in the vicinity of Ross Island, Antarctica", Journal of Geodynamics, 6 (1–4): 375–385, doi:10.1016/0264-3707(86)90050-5
  • "Terror Saddle", Geographic Names Information System , United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior
  • Treves, Samuel B. (1970), Volcanic Rocks of the Ross Island Area (PDF), retrieved 2024-02-04

PD-icon.svg This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Geological Survey .