Gerlache Strait
Gerlache Strait is a sea channel in the British Antarctic Territory, separating the south-west of the Palmer Archipelago from the Danco Coast of Graham Land and Trinity Island. Its northern limit is reckoned between Hoseason Island and Trinity island's Cape Wollaston. Its southern limit is a line from Cape Errera on Wiencke Island to Cape Renard.
The strait was sighted by the German Antarctic Expedition in 1873-74 at its south entrance: it was included in some maps under the name Bismarck Strasse ('Bismarck Strait'). It was roughly charted throughout its length by the Belgian Antarctic Expedition and in their expedition ship Belgica between 23 January and 12 February 1898, and named Détroit de Belgica 'in honour of our country and our ship'. On the return of the expedition to Belgium, the Belgian Antarctic Expedition Scientific Commission, at the request of expedition members, renamed the feature Détroit de Gerlache, after Lieutenant A.V.J. de Gerlache de Gomery, Commander of the Belgian Antarctic Expedition (from whom Gerlache Island is also named). The strait was further charted by the French Antarctic Expedition, 1903-05. The strait was further charted by the French Antarctic Expedition, 1908-10. In all British Government correspondence from 1908 at least until 1912 and in whalers' usage for that period was to 'Belgica Strait' (not Gerlache Strait).
The strait was further charted by Discovery Investigations in 1927. An extensive survey of the strait by an RN Hydrographic Survey Unit was made from Shackleton in 1959-60. Further survey was carried out in the strait by an RN Hydrographic Survey Unit from HMS Protector in 1963-64.
On the expedition in the Gerlache Strait, biologist Emil Racoviță made several discoveries, including a flightless midge fly that was later (1900) formally named Belgica antarctica by the Belgian entomologist Jean-Charles Jacobs.
The Gerlache Strait has spiky blue icebergs, and is frequented by whales. It can be viewed from Spigot Peak.[1]
Geology
Four tectonic blocks are identifiable in the Gerlache Strait area, bounded by two systems of Tertiary strike-slip faults. The longitudinal faults include the SW-NE trending Neumayer Fault that extends from Peltier Channel across Wiencke Island, and then onwards most likely as the Gerlache Fault. The south-west to north-east trending Fournier Fault parallels the Gerlache Fault and divides Anvers Island. The transverse faults trend east to west and south-east to north-west across Wiencke Island and Brabant Island, and include the Schollaert Channel faults. The Danco Coast Block extends from Cape Willems to Wilhelmina Bay. The Brabant Island Block encompasses the southern portion of that island. The Neumayer Channel Block is bound by the Neumayer Fault and the Fournier Fault. The Anvers-Melchior Islands Block includes northwest Anvers Island and its offshore islands Melchior Islands.[2]
History
In 1934, polar explorer Lincoln Ellsworth reported in the New York Times that a heavy snowstorm and ice made it necessary to change his plan for going from De Gerlache Strait out to sea and south to Adelaide Island.[3] In 1979, four American adventurers survived a two-month expedition to Antarctica. The Washington Post reported that the most dangerous part of their journey was crossing the Gerlache Straight on a raft.[4]
The writer Dianne Ackerman said she went to Gerlache Strait in the 1990s in order to find inspiration for writing prose.[5]
In 2002, Lynne Cox became the first person to swim a mile in the near-freezing Antarctic Ocean.[6] She did the swim in Gerlache Strait.[6] In 2021, a couple on a ship in the Gerlache Straight captured footage of a gentoo penguin narrowly escaping a few hungry killer whales.[7]
Ecology
The Gerlache Strait is known to have high abundances of Humpback whale (Megaptera novaengliae) in the austral summer months.[8] Where there are dense swarms on Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba), attracting large aggregations of migrating cetaceans.[9]
Pictures
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Iceberg in the Gerlache -
Iceberg -
Humpback whales in the strait -
Killer whale swimming
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Location
- Location map: 64°30’0"S, 62°19’59"W
Outside links
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("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Gerlache Strait) |
References
- ↑ Groer, Annie (23 March 2017). "Checking off my seventh continent: A half-price voyage to Antarctica". Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/travel/checking-off-my-seventh-continent-a-half-price-voyage-to-antarctica/2017/03/23/2e742388-080c-11e7-b77c-0047d15a24e0_story.html.
- ↑ Birkenmajer, Krzysztof (1999). The Tectonic Structure of Gerlache Strait, West Antarctica, in Polish Polar Studies XXVI Polar Symposium. Lublin: Polish Polar Studies. pp. 45–50. http://geografia.umcs.lublin.pl/wyprawy/publikacje/spl1999/1999%20art%2007.pdf. Retrieved 3 January 2020.
- ↑ Ellsworth, Lincoln; Leader; Expedition, Ellsworth Transantarctic Flight (1934-12-03). "ELLSWORTH GAINS WEDDELL SEA ICE; Party Reaches Shelf Surface Only to Find It Dangerous for Plane Take-Off." (in en-US). The New York Times. SSN 0362-4331. https://www.nytimes.com/1934/12/03/archives/ellsworth-gains-weddell-sea-ice-party-reaches-shelf-surface-only-to.html. "SNOW HILL ISLAND, Weddell Sea, Dec. 2. -- A heavy snowstorm and much ice have made it necessary to change the plan for going from De Gerlache Strait out to sea and south to Adelaide Island."
- ↑ Krause, Charles (13 April 1979). "To the Bottom of the World". Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1979/04/13/to-the-bottom-of-the-world/51a7869f-2de5-4843-97b4-222223bd3709/.
- ↑ Ackerman, Diane (1999). "Deep Play". https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/books/first/a/ackerman-play.html?_r=1&oref=slogin.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Sanders, Erica (2004-01-25). "Just Add Water" (in en-US). The New York Times. SSN 0362-4331. https://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/25/books/just-add-water.html. "The swim itself, made in the Gerlache Strait to the beach at Neko Harbor, was not without drama."
- ↑ Sparks, Hannah (2021-03-08). "Fleeing penguin escapes killer whales in nail-biting video" (in en-US). https://nypost.com/2021/03/08/heroic-penguin-escapes-killer-whales-in-nail-biting-video/.
- ↑ Johannessen, John Elling Deehr; Biuw, Martin; Lindstrøm, Ulf; Ollus, Victoria Marja Sofia; Martín López, Lucía Martina; Gkikopoulou, Kalliopi C.; Oosthuizen, Wessel Chris; Lowther, Andrew (2022). "Intra-season variations in distribution and abundance of humpback whales in the West Antarctic Peninsula using cruise vessels as opportunistic platforms" (in en). Ecology and Evolution 12 (2). doi:10.1002/ece3.8571. SSN 2045-7758. PMID 35154653. Bibcode: 2022EcoEv..12E8571J.
- ↑ Nowacek, Douglas P.; Friedlaender, Ari S.; Halpin, Patrick N.; Hazen, Elliott L.; Johnston, David W.; Read, Andrew J.; Espinasse, Boris; Zhou, Meng et al. (2011-04-27). "Super-Aggregations of Krill and Humpback Whales in Wilhelmina Bay, Antarctic Peninsula" (in en). PLOS ONE 6 (4). doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0019173. SSN 1932-6203. PMID 21556153. Bibcode: 2011PLoSO...619173N.
- Gazetteer and Map of The British Antarctic Territory: Gerlache Strait
- Gerlache Straight