The Way Archipelago encompasses more than 120 small islands and rocks, of which the largest is Stillwell Island, distributed close offshore in the form of an arc. The archipelago extends from the vicinity of Cape Gray, at the eastern side of the entrance to Commonwealth Bay, to the vicinity of Garnet Point at the western side of the entrance to Watt Bay, in George V Land, Antarctica. Most of the islands are relatively snow-free, even in winter, because of the strong katabatic winds that characterise the weather in the region. Stillwell Island and Garnet Point exhibit large garnet crystals in the metamorphic gneiss rocks that dominate the local geology. [1]
The archipelago was discovered by the Australasian Antarctic Expedition (1911–14) under Douglas Mawson, who named the group for Sir Samuel Way, Chancellor of the University of Adelaide, in 1911.
A 3,247 ha site, comprising the whole archipelago, has been designated an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because it supports breeding colonies totalling some 52,000 pairs of Adélie penguins, estimated from 2011 satellite imagery. About 4,000 pairs of southern fulmars also breed in the region. [1]
Signy Island is a small subantarctic island in the South Orkney Islands of Antarctica. It was named by the Norwegian whaler Petter Sørlle (1884–1933) after his wife, Signy Therese.
Trinity Island or Île de la Trinité or Isla Trinidad is an island 24 km (15 mi) long and 10 km (6 mi) wide in the northern part of the Palmer Archipelago, Antarctica. It lies 37 km (23 mi) east of Hoseason Island,72.6 km (45 mi) south of Deception Island in the South Shetland Islands, and 10.3 km (6 mi) north-northwest of Cape Andreas on the Antarctic Peninsula. The island was named by Otto Nordenskiöld, leader of the 1901-1904 Swedish Antarctic Expedition (SAE) in commemoration of Edward Bransfield's "Trinity Land" of 1820.
Welch Island is an island, 1.8 km (1.1 mi) long with a prominent pinnacle rock of 130 m (427 ft), lying north of the Rouse Islands and 2 km (1.2 mi) off the eastern side of Holme Bay in Mac. Robertson Land, Antarctica. It lies 1 km (0.6 mi) south of Welch Rocks.
Inexpressible Island is a small, rocky island in Terra Nova Bay, Victoria Land, Antarctica.
Clark Peninsula is a rocky peninsula, about 3 km (2 mi) long and wide, lying 5 km (3 mi) north-east of Australia's Casey Station at the north side of Newcomb Bay on the Budd Coast of Wilkes Land in Antarctica.
Dibble Glacier in Antarctica is a prominent channel glacier flowing from the continental ice and terminating in a prominent tongue at the east side of Davis Bay. It was delineated from air photos taken by U.S. Navy Operation Highjump (1946–47), and named by the Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names for Jonas Dibble, ship's carpenter on the sloop Peacock of the United States Exploring Expedition (1838–42) under Charles Wilkes. Dibble is credited with leaving his sick bed and working 24 hours without relief with other carpenters to repair a broken rudder on the Peacock, when the ship was partially crushed in an ice bay in 151°19′E and forced to retire northward.
The Curzon Islands are a small group of rocky islands lying close off Cape Découverte, Adélie Coast. They were probably sighted in January 1840 by a French expedition under Captain Jules Dumont d'Urville, though not identified as islands on d'Urville's maps. The islands were roughly charted in 1912 by Captain J.K. Davis of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition ship Aurora and named by Mawson for Lord Curzon, the President of the Royal Geographical Society, 1911–14. The islands were mapped in detail by the French Antarctic Expedition, 1950–52.
The Tryne Islands are a group of numerous small Antarctic islands and rocks, about 7 km (4 mi) in extent, forming the western limit of Tryne Bay and Tryne Sound at the north-eastern end of the Vestfold Hills. The islands were mapped by Norwegian cartographers from aerial photographs taken by the Lars Christensen Expedition (1936–37) and named Trynøyane.
Cape Bienvenue is a small rocky cape which is partially ice-covered, 44 m, forming the east side of the entrance to Piner Bay. Photographed from the air by U.S. Navy Operation Highjump, 1946–47. Charted and named by the French Antarctic Expedition under Barre, 1951–52, who established an astronomical control station on the cape. Bienvenue is a French word meaning welcome, and describes the pleasure of the French party at finding a cape not shown on previous charts where a landing could be made.
The Cape-Pigeon Rocks are twin rocky promontories on the western side of Watt Bay, 6 kilometres (3 nmi) south of Garnet Point. They were discovered by the Australasian Antarctic Expedition (1911–14) under Douglas Mawson, who gave the name because of the large rookery of Cape petrels here. The Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names added a hyphen between the first and second words in the specific part of the name to reduce ambiguity and emphasize the generic term "Rocks".
Stillwell Island is a small, steep rocky island, 0.5 km (0.25 nmi) in diameter, which is the largest member of the Way Archipelago. It lies at the west side of the entrance to Watt Bay, 2.8 km (1.5 nmi) northeast of Garnet Point. Discovered by the Australasian Antarctic Expedition (1911–14) under Douglas Mawson. He named it for Frank L. Stillwell, geologist with the expedition whose detailed survey included this coastal area.
Guépratte Island is an ice-covered island 2.8 km (1.7 mi) long, lying between Anvers Island and Brabant Island at the east side of the entrance to Fournier Bay, in the Palmer Archipelago, Antarctica. The island was first shown on the Ludwig Friederichsen map of 1895, embodying the 1873–74 explorations of a German expedition under Eduard Dallmann. It was later charted by the French Antarctic Expedition, 1903–05, under Jean-Baptiste Charcot, who named it after Captain Guépratte of the French Navy. The name "Discovery Island", applied in 1927 by Discovery Investigations personnel on the Discovery, has been rejected in favour of the earlier name.
Garnet Point is a rocky coastal point consisting of garnet gneiss, located at the west side of the entrance to Watt Bay, in the George V Coast area of Antarctica. Garnet Point was discovered by the Australasian Antarctic Expedition (1911–14) under Douglas Mawson, and named by that expedition's geological party led by Frank L. Stillwell.
The Géologie Archipelago, also known as the Pointe Géologie Archipelago, Geology Archipelago or Cape Geology Archipelago, is a small archipelago of rocky islands and rocks close to the north of Cape Géodésie and Astrolabe Glacier Tongue, extending from Helene Island on the west to the Dumoulin Islands on the east, in Adélie Land, Antarctica.
Cape Hunter is a rocky promontory on the west shore of Commonwealth Bay, Antarctica, 8 nautical miles (15 km) west of Cape Denison. It was discovered in 1912 and explored the following year by the Australasian Antarctic Expedition under Douglas Mawson, who named it for John G. Hunter, chief biologist of the expedition.
Kloa Point is a prominent coastal point projecting from the east side of Edward VIII Plateau, 5.6 kilometres (3 nmi) north of Cape Gotley, Antarctica. It was mapped by Norwegian cartographers from aerial photographs taken by the Lars Christensen Expedition, 1936–37, and called by them Kloa ('claw').
The Mackellar Islands, also MacKellar Islets, are a group of about 30 small islands and rocks lying 3 kilometres (1.5 nmi) north of Cape Denison in the center of Commonwealth Bay, George V Land, Antarctica. They were discovered by the Australasian Antarctic Expedition (1911–14) under Douglas Mawson, who named them for C.D. Mackellar of London, a patron of the expedition. The largest is Greater Mackellar Island.
The Madder Cliffs are reddish rock cliffs which form the north side of the entrance to Suspiros Bay, at the west end of Joinville Island, Antarctica. They rise steeply from the sea to about 305 metres (1,000 ft). The cliffs were surveyed by the Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey in 1953–54. The name, given in 1956 by the UK Antarctic Place-Names Committee, is descriptive of the red colour of the rocks, madder being a red vegetable pigment.
Rostand Island is a rocky island 400 m long and 200 m south-east of Petrel Island in the Geologie Archipelago of Antarctica. It was charted in 1951 by the French Antarctic Expedition and named by them for Jean Rostand, noted French biologist.
Mount Archer is a rock peak immediately south of Archer Point on the west side of Harald Bay in Antarctica. The peak was mapped from aerial photos taken in February 1959 by the ANARE led by Phillip Law. It is named after Archer Point.
This article incorporates public domain material from the United States Geological Survey document: "Way Archipelago".(content from the Geographic Names Information System )