Hanessian Foreland is a relatively low, snow-covered foreland or peninsula

Peninsula

A peninsula is a piece of land that is bordered by water on three sides but connected to mainland. In many Germanic and Celtic languages and also in Baltic, Slavic and Hungarian, peninsulas are called "half-islands"....

, over 20 nautical miles (37 km) long and 10 nautical miles (18 km) wide, on the coast of Marie Byrd Land

Marie Byrd Land

Marie Byrd Land is the portion of West Antarctica lying east of the Ross Ice Shelf and the Ross Sea and south of the Pacific Ocean, extending eastward approximately to a line between the head of the Ross Ice Shelf and Eights Coast. It stretches between 158°W and 103°24'W...

. It extends seaward between Siniff Bay

Siniff Bay

Siniff Bay is a bay 13 nautical miles wide between Verleger Point and Melville Point, along the coast of Marie Byrd Land. Mapped by United States Geological Survey from surveys and U.S. Navy air photos, 1959-65. Named by Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names for Donald B...

 and the western end of Getz Ice Shelf Mapped by 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,...

 (USGS) from surveys and U.S. Navy aerial photography, 1959-65. Named by 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...

 (US-ACAN) after John Hanessian, Jr. (1925–74), of George Washington University

George Washington University

The George Washington University is a private, coeducational comprehensive university located in Washington, D.C. in the United States...

, Washington DC, noted authority on political science and international affairs. At the time of his death he was on leave to the National Science Foundation

National Science Foundation

The National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health...

. From 1954-58, he served on the National Academy

National academy

A national academy is an organizational body, usually operating with state financial support and approval, that co-ordinates scholarly research activities and standards for academic disciplines, most frequently in the sciences but also the humanities. Typically the country's learned societies in...

 of Sciences staff and made substantial contribution to the Committee on Polar Research in the planning and carrying out of the US-IGY program.