Larsen Harbour
Larsen Harbour is a narrow inlet two and a half miles long in the south of South Georgia. It is a branch of Drygalski Fjord, entered two and a half miles west-northwest of Nattriss Head, at the southeast end of the island.
The inlet indents volcanic rocks and sheeted dykes known as the Larsen Harbour Formation.
This inlet was charted by the Second German Antarctic Expedition, 1911–12, under Wilhelm Filchner, who named it for Captain Carl Anton Larsen, the famed Norwegian Antarctic explorer and leading entrepreneur of South Georgia. Amongst Larsen's significant contributions to the exploration of Antarctica, one was the first discovery of fossils, for which he received the Back Grant from the Royal Geographical Society.[1] Larsen is considered the founder of the Antarctic whaling industry and of the settlement at Grytviken, South Georgia.[2][3]
The peaks and mountain crests surrounding the almost land-locked harbour was described by Sir Ernest Shackleton's photographer Frank Hurley as "most beautiful and exceeding all in grandeur even that of Milford Sound".[4]
The Niall Rankin expedition aboard the Albatross, spent some time here as they studied the Weddell seal colony before going on to Esbensen Bay.[5]
The area is rat-free, allowing species such as the South Georgia pipit, and burrowing petrels and prions to thrive. Mountains descend steeply into the sea here, and various glaciers calve into the sea.[6][7]
Location
- Location map: 54°50’19"S, 36°-0’41"W
References
- ↑ Rabassa, Jorge; Borla, Maria Laura (21 November 2006). Antarctic Peninsula & Tierra del Fuego. Taylor and Francis. pp. 40. ISBN 978-0-415-41379-4. http://www.taylorandfrancis.com/shopping_cart/products/product_detail.asp?sku=&isbn=9780415413794&parent_id=&pc=/shopping_cart/search/search.asp?search%3DAntarctic%2520Peninsula%2520%26%2520Tierra%2520del%2520Fuego.
- ↑ Mills, William James (2003). Exploring Polar Frontiers A Historical Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. pp. 373–374. ISBN 1-57607-422-6. http://www.abc-clio.com/products/overview.aspx?productid=108815.
- ↑ Dr Bernard Stonehouse, ed (2002). Encyclopedia of Antarctica and the Southern Oceans. Toronto: Wiley. ISBN 0-471-98665-8. http://ca.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-0471986658,subjectCd-ES00.html. Retrieved 25 October 2009.
- ↑ Murphy, Shane (2001). Shackleton's photographer [CD Rom : Photographs of scenes and diary of incidents in connection with happenings to the Weddell Sea Party, 12th October, 1914 - 16th October, 1917]. Scottsdale, AZ: Shane Murphy. ISBN 0-9703148-2-5. https://books.google.ca/books?id=eFWaCEpwUKYC&pg=PA29&dq=Larsen+Harbour&as_brr=3. Retrieved 25 October 2009.
- ↑ Headland, Robert (1984). The Island of South Georgia. New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-25274-1. https://books.google.com/books?printsec=frontcover&vid=ISBN0521252741&vid=ISBN0521424747&vid=LCCN83024008. Retrieved 25 October 2009.
- ↑ Wheeler, Tony (2004). The Falklands & South Georgia Island. Footscray, Vic.: Lonely Planet Publications. pp. 160. ISBN 1-74059-643-9. https://books.google.com/books?printsec=frontcover&vid=ISBN1740596439#v=onepage&q=&f=false. Retrieved 25 October 2009.
- ↑ MAIR, B. F.. "The Larsen Harbour Formation and associated intrusive rocks of southern South Georgia". Bulletin - British Antarctic Survey (British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council, Cambridge) 52 (983): 87–107. SSN 0007-0262.
- Gazetteer and Map of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands: Larsen Harbour
Books
- Headland, Robert (1984). The Island of South Georgia. New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-25274-1.
- Mills, William James (2003). Exploring Polar Frontiers A Historical Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. pp. 373–374. ISBN 1-57607-422-6.
- Murphy, Shane (2001). Shackleton's photographer [CD Rom] : Photographs of scenes and diary of incidents in connection with happenings to the Weddell Sea Party, 12 October, 1914 – 16 October, 1917. Scottsdale, AZ: Shane Murphy. ISBN 0-9703148-2-5.
- Rabassa, Jorge; Borla, Maria Laura (21 November 2006). Antarctic Peninsula & Tierra del Fuego. Taylor and Francis. pp. 40. ISBN 978-0-415-41379-4.
- Stonehouse, Dr Bernard, ed (2002). Encyclopedia of Antarctica and the Southern Oceans. Toronto: Wiley. ISBN 0-471-98665-8.
- Wheeler, Tony (2004). The Falklands & South Georgia Island. Footscray, Vic.: Lonely Planet Publications. pp. 160. ISBN 1-74059-643-9.
Journals
- Bell, C.M.; Mair, B.F.; Storey, B.C.. The pre-Cretaceous Larsen Harbour Formation of southern Soulh Georgia. British Antarctic Survey.
- MAIR, B. F.. "The Larsen Harbour Formation and associated intrusive rocks of southern South Georgia". Bulletin - British Antarctic Survey (British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council, Cambridge) 52 (983): 87–107. SSN 0007-0262.
Further reading
- Carr, Tim; Carr, Pauline (1998). Antarctic oasis : Under the spell of South Georgia. New York: W.W. Norton. ISBN 0-393-04605-2. https://books.google.ca/books?id=5jAI94owpJgC&printsec=frontcover. Retrieved 25 October 2009.
