California Plateau is an undulating ice-covered plateau, 30 milelong and from 2 to 12 mi (3.2 to 19.3 ) wide, which rises to 3000 metre at the eastern side of Scott Glacier

Scott Glacier (Transantarctic Mountains)

The Scott Glacier is a major glacier, 120 miles long, that drains the East Antarctic Ice Sheet through the Queen Maud Mountains to the Ross Ice Shelf...

. The plateau reaches a maximum height of 3275 metres (10,744.8 ft) in Mount Blackburn

Mount Blackburn (Antarctica)

Mount Blackburn is a massive, flat-topped mountain, high, standing just east of the Scott Glacier where it surmounts the southwest end of California Plateau and the Watson Escarpment, in the Queen Maud Mountains.It was discovered by and named for Quin A...

 at the southern end. The northwestern side of the plateau is marked by the steep rock cliffs of Watson Escarpment

Watson Escarpment

Watson Escarpment is a major escarpment in the Queen Maud Mountains, trending northward along the east margin of Scott Glacier, then eastward to Reedy Glacier where it turns southward along the glacier's west side. Somewhat arcuate, the escarpment is nearly 100 nautical miles long, rises...

; the southeastern side grades gradually to the elevation of the interior ice. It was mapped by the United States Geological Survey

United States Geological Survey

The United States Geological Survey is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and the natural hazards that threaten it. The organization has four major science disciplines, concerning biology,...

 from ground surveys and from U.S. Navy aerial photography, 1960–64, and named by the Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names

Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names

The Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names is an advisory committee of the United States Board on Geographic Names responsible for recommending names for features in Antarctica...

 for the several branches of the University of California

University of California

The University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...

which have sent numerous researchers to work in Antarctica.