Elephant Island is an ice-covered, mountainous island off the coast of

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest contine ...

in the outer reaches of the

South Shetland Islands The South Shetland Islands are a group of Antarctic islands with a total area of . They lie about north of the Antarctic Peninsula, and between southwest of the nearest point of the South Orkney Islands. By the Antarctic Treaty of 195 ...

, in the

Southern Ocean The Southern Ocean, also known as the Antarctic Ocean, comprises the southernmost waters of the World Ocean, generally taken to be south of 60° S latitude and encircling Antarctica. With a size of , it is regarded as the second-small ...

. The island is situated north-northeast of the tip of the

Antarctic Peninsula The Antarctic Peninsula, known as O'Higgins Land in Chile and Tierra de San Martín in Argentina, and originally as Graham Land in the United Kingdom and the Palmer Peninsula in the United States, is the northernmost part of mainland Antarctic ...

, west-southwest of South Georgia, south of the

Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubouzet ...

, and southeast of

Cape Horn Cape Horn ( es, Cabo de Hornos, ) is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island. Although not the most southerly point of South America (which are the Diego Ramírez ...

. It is within the Antarctic claims of

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

and the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. The Brazilian Antarctic Program maintains a shelter on the island, Goeldi, supporting the work of up to six researchers each during the summer, and formerly had another ( Wiltgen), which was dismantled in the summers of 1997 and 1998.

Toponym

Elephant Island's name is attributed to both its elephant head-like appearance and the sighting of

elephant seal Elephant seals are very large, oceangoing earless seals in the genus ''Mirounga''. Both species, the northern elephant seal (''M. angustirostris'') and the southern elephant seal (''M. leonina''), were hunted to the brink of extinction for oil ...

s by Captain George Powell in 1821, one of the earliest sightings. However, in Russia it is still known under the name given by its discoverers in 1821 – Mordvinova Island.

Geography

The island is oriented approximately east–west, with a maximum elevation of at Pardo Ridge. The weather is normally foggy with much snow, and winds can reach . Significant named features are

Cape Yelcho Cape Yelcho is the northwestern extremity of Elephant Island in the South Shetland Islands of Antarctica. It was named by the UK Joint Services Expedition, 1970–71,Cape Valentine and Cape Lookout at the northeastern and southern extremes, and

Point Wild Point Wild is a point west of Cape Valentine, east of Saddleback Point, and directly adjacent to the Furness Glacier on the north coast of Elephant Island. It was named Cape Wild by the Shackleton Endurance expedition 1914–16, but Point W ...

, a spit on the north coast. The

Endurance Glacier Endurance Glacier is a broad glacier north of Mount Elder, draining south-east to the south coast of Elephant Island in the South Shetland Islands of Antarctica, and is the main discharge glacier on the island. It was named by the UK Antarctic ...

is the main discharge glacier.

Geology

Elephant Island is part of the Scotia metamorphic complex, which was created by

Cretaceous The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 145 to 66 million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era, as well as the longest. At around 79 million years, it is the longest geological period of th ...

sea floor sediments being scraped off and metamorphosed at the Scotia subduction zone. The resulting rocks are

phyllite Phyllite ( ) is a type of foliated metamorphic rock created from slate that is further metamorphosed so that very fine grained white mica achieves a preferred orientation.Stephen Marshak ''Essentials of Geology'', 3rd ed. It is primarily compo ...

blueschist Blueschist (), also called glaucophane schist, is a metavolcanic rock that forms by the metamorphism of basalt and rocks with similar composition at high pressures and low temperatures (), approximately corresponding to a depth of . The blue co ...

s and

greenschist Greenschists are metamorphic rocks that formed under the lowest temperatures and pressures usually produced by regional metamorphism, typically and 2–10 kilobars (). Greenschists commonly have an abundance of green minerals such as chlorite ...

s typical of an

accretionary wedge An accretionary wedge or accretionary prism forms from sediments accreted onto the non-subducting tectonic plate at a convergent plate boundary. Most of the material in the accretionary wedge consists of marine sediments scraped off from the do ...

, with increased metamorphism from northeast to southwest. These rocks are at the surface here because of uplift along the Shackleton Fault Zone where it meets the

South Scotia Ridge The Scotia Plate () is a tectonic plate on the edge of the South Atlantic and Southern oceans. Thought to have formed during the early Eocene with the opening of the Drake Passage that separates South America from Antarctica, it is a minor plat ...

. This complex is very similar in age and rock types to those of coastal California, including Catalina Island and the

Big Sur Big Sur () is a rugged and mountainous section of the Central Coast of California between Carmel and San Simeon, where the Santa Lucia Mountains rise abruptly from the Pacific Ocean. It is frequently praised for its dramatic scenery. Big Sur ha ...

coast. Elephant Island is the type locality for phosphate mineral spheniscidite.

Flora and fauna

The island supports no significant flora or native fauna, although migratory

gentoo penguin The gentoo penguin ( ) (''Pygoscelis papua'') is a penguin species (or possibly a species complex) in the genus ''Pygoscelis'', most closely related to the Adélie penguin (''P. adeliae'') and the chinstrap penguin (''P. antarcticus''). The ear ...

s and seals may be found, and chinstrap penguins nest in season. A lack of safe

anchorage Anchorage () is the largest city in the U.S. state of Alaska by population. With a population of 291,247 in 2020, it contains nearly 40% of the state's population. The Anchorage metropolitan area, which includes Anchorage and the neighboring Ma ...

has prevented any permanent human settlement, despite the island being well placed to support scientific,

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...

and

whaling Whaling is the process of hunting of whales for their usable products such as meat and blubber, which can be turned into a type of oil that became increasingly important in the Industrial Revolution. It was practiced as an organized industry ...

activities. Due to slow recoveries and illegal whaling by the Soviet Union with support from Japan, numbers of

southern right whale The southern right whale (''Eubalaena australis'') is a baleen whale, one of three species classified as right whales belonging to the genus ''Eubalaena''. Southern right whales inhabit oceans south of the Equator, between the latitudes of 20 ...

s visiting Elephant island are still at low levels.

History

First Russian Antarctic expedition

The First Russian Antarctic expedition led by

Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen Fabian Gottlieb Thaddeus von Bellingshausen (russian: Фадде́й Фадде́евич Беллинсга́узен, translit=Faddéy Faddéevich Bellinsgáuzen; – ) was a Russian naval officer, cartographer and explorer, who ultimately ...

and

Mikhail Lazarev Admiral Mikhail Petrovich Lazarev (russian: Михаил Петрович Лазарев, 3 November 1788 – 11 April 1851) was a Russian Naval fleet, fleet commander and an explorer. Education and early career Lazarev was born in Vladimir, R ...

on the 985-ton sloop-of-war ''Vostok'' ("East") and the 530-ton support vessel ''Mirny'' ("Peaceful") discovered Elephant Island on 29 January 1821 and named it ''Остров Мордвинова'' ("Mordvinov Island") in honour of .

''Endurance'' expedition

The island was the desolate refuge of the British explorer

Ernest Shackleton Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton (15 February 1874 – 5 January 1922) was an Anglo-Irish Antarctic explorer who led three British expeditions to the Antarctic. He was one of the principal figures of the period known as the Heroic Age of ...

and his crew in 1916 following the loss of their ship ''

Endurance Endurance (also related to sufferance, resilience, constitution, fortitude, and hardiness) is the ability of an organism to exert itself and remain active for a long period of time, as well as its ability to resist, withstand, recover from a ...

'' in the pack ice of the

Weddell Sea The Weddell Sea is part of the Southern Ocean and contains the Weddell Gyre. Its land boundaries are defined by the bay formed from the coasts of Coats Land and the Antarctic Peninsula. The easternmost point is Cape Norvegia at Princess Martha ...

. The crew of 28 reached Cape Valentine on Elephant Island after months spent drifting on ice floes and a harrowing crossing of the open ocean in small lifeboats. After camping at Cape Valentine for two nights, Shackleton and his crew moved west to a small, rocky spit at the terminus of a glacier, which offered better protection from rockfalls and from the sea, and which they called ''Point Wild''. Realizing that there was no chance of passive rescue, Shackleton decided to sail to South Georgia, where he knew there were several whaling stations. Shackleton sailed with

Tom Crean Tom or Thomas Crean may refer to: *Thomas Crean (1873–1923), Irish rugby union player, British Army soldier and doctor *Tom Crean (explorer) (1877–1938), Irish seaman and Antarctic explorer *Tom Crean (basketball) Thomas Aaron Crean (born Ma ...

, Frank Worsley, Harry "Chippy" McNish,

Tim McCarthy Timothy J. McCarthy (born June 20, 1949) is an American former policeman and special agent in the United States Secret Service. McCarthy is best known for defending President Ronald Reagan during the assassination attempt on Reagan's life on M ...

, and John Vincent on an

voyage Voyage(s) or The Voyage may refer to: Literature *''Voyage : A Novel of 1896'', Sterling Hayden * ''Voyage'' (novel), a 1996 science fiction novel by Stephen Baxter *''The Voyage'', Murray Bail * "The Voyage" (short story), a 1921 story by ...

in the lifeboat ''James Caird'' beginning on Easter Monday, April 24, 1916, and arriving at South Georgia 16 days later. His second-in-command,

Frank Wild John Robert Francis Wild (18 April 1873 – 19 August 1939), known as Frank Wild, was an English sailor and explorer. He participated in five expeditions to Antarctica during the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration, for which he was awar ...

, was left in charge of the remaining party on Elephant Island, waiting for Shackleton's return with a rescue ship. There was much work for the stranded men. Because the island had no natural source of shelter, they constructed a shack and wind blocks from their remaining two lifeboats and pieces of canvas tents. Blubber lamps were used for lighting. They hunted for penguins and seals, neither of which were plentiful in autumn or winter. Shackleton instructed Wild to depart with the crew for

Deception Island Deception Island is an island in the South Shetland Islands close to the Antarctic Peninsula with a large and usually "safe" natural harbor, which is occasionally troubled by the underlying active volcano. This island is the caldera of an acti ...

if he did not return to rescue them by the beginning of summer, but after four and a half months, on August 30, 1916, the artist George Marston spotted a ship. The ship, with Shackleton on board, was the tug '' Yelcho'', from

Punta Arenas Punta Arenas (; historically Sandy Point in English) is the capital city of Chile's southernmost region, Magallanes and Antarctica Chilena. The city was officially renamed as Magallanes in 1927, but in 1938 it was changed back to "Punta Aren ...

, commanded by

Luis Pardo Luis is a given name. It is the Spanish language, Spanish form of the originally Germanic language, Germanic name or . Other Iberian Romance languages have comparable forms: (with an accent mark on the i) in Portuguese language, Portuguese and ...

, which rescued all the men who had set out on the original expedition.

Joint Services Expeditions 1970–71

A Joint Services Expedition led by Commander Malcolm Burley was dropped off on Elephant Island by . The party then spent six months carrying out a survey of the island and other scientific research for the

British Antarctic Survey The British Antarctic Survey (BAS) is the United Kingdom's national polar research institute. It has a dual purpose, to conduct polar science, enabling better understanding of global issues, and to provide an active presence in the Antarctic on ...

and climbing some of the peaks on the island. The expedition visited

but found no trace of the ''Endurance'' expedition; it did, however, find the wreckage of a large sailing vessel, likely the remains of the schooner ''Charles Shearer'' from Stonington, New London, Connecticut, under Captain William Henry Appelman. The expedition also landed on and climbed the highest peak on nearby Clarence Island.C.H. Agnew of Lochnaw
Elephant Island.
''Alpine Journal'', 1972. pp. 204-210Historic Sites and Monuments: Sailing Vessel Wreckage, Southwest Coast of Elephant Island, South Shetland Islands.
Working Paper submitted by the United Kingdom. SATCM XII. The Hague, 2000

Historic sites

contains the Endurance Memorial Site, an Antarctic Historic Site (HSM 53), with a bust of Captain Pardo and several plaques. Hampson Cove on the southwest coast of the island, including the foreshore and intertidal area, contains the wreckage of a large wooden sailing vessel; it has been designated a Historic Site or Monument (HSM 74), following a proposal by the United Kingdom to the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting.

Maps

British Antarctic Territory.
Scale 1:200000 topographic map. DOS 610 Series, Sheet W 61 54. Directorate of Overseas Surveys, Tolworth, UK, 1972.
South Shetland Islands: Elephant, Clarence and Gibbs Islands.
Scale 1:220000 topographic map. UK Antarctic Place-names Committee, 2009.
Antarctic Digital Database (ADD).
Scale 1:250000 topographic map of Antarctica. Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR). Since 1993, regularly upgraded and updated.

References

Bibliography

*''Antarctica'' Sydney: Reader's Digest, 1985. *Child, Jack ''Antarctica and South American Geopolitics: Frozen Lebensraum'' New York: Praeger Publishers, 1988. *Furse, Chris ''Elephant Island – An Antarctic Expedition'' Shrewsbury: Anthony Nelson Ltd, Shrewsbury, England, . *Mericq, Luis ''Antarctica: Chile's Claim''. Washington: National Defense University, 1987. *Pinochet de la Barra, Oscar ''La Antarctica Chilena'' Santiago: Editorial Andrés Bello, 1976. *Stewart, Andrew ''Antarctica: An Encyclopedia'' London: McFarland and Co., 1990 (2 volumes). * Worsley, Frank ''Shackleton's Boat Journey'' W.W. Norton & Co., 1933.

External links

Video of a southern right whale off Elephant Island in 2012
{{Authority control Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition Uninhabited islands Historic Sites and Monuments of Antarctica