Danco Coast

Location of the Danco Coast

The Danco Coast is a portion of the north-west coast of the Graham Land in the British Antarctic Territory, extending between Cape Herschel and Cape Renard.

The north part of this coast was sighted by Foster in 1829 and this section together with the Palmer Archipelago, was called 'Prince Williams Land' after Prince William, Duke of Clarence (from whom Clarence Island is named).

In January and February 1898 this coast was roughly charted by the Belgian Antarctic Expedition under Adrien de Gerlache, and named 'Terre Danco' for Lieutenant Emile Danco who died aboard the expedition ship Belgica on 5 June 1899.

The whole coast was photographed from the air by the Falkland Islands and Dependencies Aerial Survey Expedition, 1956-57.

The coast is bordered by the Aguirre Passage which separates it from Lemaire Island.

Noteworthy places on the Danco Coast

• Brabazon Point
• Salvesen Cove

Geology

The Danco Coast Tectonic Block includes the Upper Permian-Triassic Trinity Peninsula Group, consisting of over 1000 m of metaturbidites folded during the Gondwanide orogeny. This group is overlain by the Lower Cretaceous Antarctic Peninsula Volcanic Group, with up to 2000 m of basaltic and andesitic lavas, tuffs and agglomerates, which were folded and faulted during the Tertiary. These two groups were intruded by the Berriasian-Cenomanian granite and gabbro sills of the Andean Instrusive Suite. A system of hypabbysal dykes intruded during the Late Cretaceous or Tertiary.

Location

• Location map: 64°27’3"S, 62°3’3"W

References

• Gazetteer and Map of The British Antarctic Territory: Danco Coast
• R. Casaux, M. L. Bertolin, A. Carlini: 'Feeding habits of three seal species at the Danco Coast, Antarctica: a re-assessment': Polar Biol (2011) 34:1615–1620