Sunfix Glacier

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Sunfix Glacier ( 69°16′S64°30′W / 69.267°S 64.500°W / -69.267; -64.500 Coordinates: 69°16′S64°30′W / 69.267°S 64.500°W / -69.267; -64.500 ) is a tributary glacier, 15 nautical miles (28 km) long and 2 nautical miles (3.7 km) wide, draining east-northeast between Grimley Glacier and Lurabee Glacier into Casey Glacier, in northern Palmer Land, Antarctica. Photographed from the air by Ronne Antarctic Research Expedition (RARE) on December 22, 1947. Surveyed by Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey (FIDS) in November 1960. The name derives from the important sun fix for latitude which was observed by FIDS at the head of this glacier, an area where cloud seldom allows such observation.

Geographic coordinate system Coordinate system

A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are often chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position and two or three of the numbers represent a horizontal position; alternatively, a geographic position may be expressed in a combined three-dimensional Cartesian vector. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation. To specify a location on a plane requires a map projection.

Glacier Persistent body of ice that is moving under its own weight

A glacier is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight; it forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. Glaciers slowly deform and flow due to stresses induced by their weight, creating crevasses, seracs, and other distinguishing features. They also abrade rock and debris from their substrate to create landforms such as cirques and moraines. Glaciers form only on land and are distinct from the much thinner sea ice and lake ice that form on the surface of bodies of water.

Grimley Glacier is a tributary glacier, 15 nautical miles (28 km) long and 3 nautical miles (6 km) wide, lying 3 nautical miles north of Sunfix Glacier and flowing east-northeast into Casey Glacier in northern Palmer Land, Antarctica. The glacier was photographed from the air by the United States Antarctic Service on September 28, 1940, and by the Ronne Antarctic Research Expedition on December 22, 1947. It was surveyed by the Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey (FIDS) in December 1960 and was named by the UK Antarctic Place-Names Committee for Peter H. Grimley of FIDS, a geologist at Horseshoe Island and Stonington Island in 1960.


PD-icon.svg This article incorporates  public domain material from the United States Geological Survey document "Sunfix Glacier" (content from the Geographic Names Information System ).

United States Geological Survey scientific agency of the United States government

The United States Geological Survey is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and the natural hazards that threaten it. The organization has four major science disciplines, concerning biology, geography, geology, and hydrology. The USGS is a fact-finding research organization with no regulatory responsibility.

Geographic Names Information System geographical database

The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is a database that contains name and locative information about more than two million physical and cultural features located throughout the United States of America and its territories. It is a type of gazetteer. GNIS was developed by the United States Geological Survey in cooperation with the United States Board on Geographic Names (BGN) to promote the standardization of feature names.



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