Minna Bluff
Encyclopedia
Minna Bluff is a rocky promontory at the eastern end of a volcanic Antarctic peninsula projecting deep into the Ross Ice Shelf
at 78°30′S 169°0′E. It forms a long, narrow arm which culminates in a south-pointing hook feature (Minna Hook), and is the subject of research into Antarctic cryosphere history, funded by the National Science Foundation
, Office of Polar Programs.
The bluff is mentioned repeatedly in the history of Antarctic exploration. It was first sighted in June 1902 , during Captain Scott's Discovery Expedition, 1901–04. It was thereafter recognised as a key landmark and location for vital supply depots for southern journeys towards the South Pole
. Originally identified simply as "the Bluff", it was later named by Captain Scott after the wife of Royal Geographical Society
former president Sir Clements Markham.
Every expedition that followed Scott on this route after his pioneering journey (including Ernest Shackleton
1908, Scott himself 1911 and Shackleton's Ross Sea Party
1914-16)used Minna Bluff to position depots and as a critical marker to guide homeward journeys. Because of the state of the ice in its immediate vicinity, the polar route was established some 20 miles to its east, depots being laid on this route within sight of the Bluff.
The researches of George Simpson
, meteorologist on Scott's Terra Nova Expedition
established that Minna Bluff has an effect on polar weather. The mass of the Bluff deflects eastward the southerly winds which sweep along the Ross Ice Shelf's eastern edge, and this deflection is then divided when the winds reach Ross Island
some 50 miles further north. One stream sweeps into McMurdo Sound
, the other goes eastward to Cape Crozier
. This division of the wind direction is, among other consequences, the cause of the "windless bight" area on the southern coast of Ross Island, an exceptionally cold area of fogs and low winds, encountered on various land journeys between McMurdo Sound and Cape Crozier
undertaken on Scott's two expeditions.
The bluff is often regarded as the southernmost point of Victoria Land
, and separates the Scott Coast
to the north from the Hillary Coast
of the Ross Dependency to the south.
Minna Hook is a massive hook-shaped volcanic feature, 9 nautical miles (17 km) long and rising to 1115 m, that forms the southeast termination of the peninsula
named Minna Bluff
at the south end of Scott Coast
. The name derives from Minna Bluff and was first used in a geologic sketch map and report by Anne Wright-Grassham, 1987.
Minna Saddle is a sweeping snow saddle, several miles long and wide, at the junction of Minna Bluff
and the east slopes of Mount Discovery
. Named in 1958 for its association with Minna Bluff by the New Zealand
party of the Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition
, 1956-58.
Ross Ice Shelf
The Ross Ice Shelf is the largest ice shelf of Antarctica . It is several hundred metres thick. The nearly vertical ice front to the open sea is more than 600 km long, and between 15 and 50 metres high above the water surface...
at 78°30′S 169°0′E. It forms a long, narrow arm which culminates in a south-pointing hook feature (Minna Hook), and is the subject of research into Antarctic cryosphere history, funded by 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...
, Office of Polar Programs.
The bluff is mentioned repeatedly in the history of Antarctic exploration. It was first sighted in June 1902 , during Captain Scott's Discovery Expedition, 1901–04. It was thereafter recognised as a key landmark and location for vital supply depots for southern journeys towards the South Pole
South Pole
The South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole or Terrestrial South Pole, is one of the two points where the Earth's axis of rotation intersects its surface. It is the southernmost point on the surface of the Earth and lies on the opposite side of the Earth from the North Pole...
. Originally identified simply as "the Bluff", it was later named by Captain Scott after the wife of Royal Geographical Society
Royal Geographical Society
The Royal Geographical Society is a British learned society founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical sciences...
former president Sir Clements Markham.
Every expedition that followed Scott on this route after his pioneering journey (including Ernest Shackleton
Ernest Shackleton
Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton, CVO, OBE was a notable explorer from County Kildare, Ireland, who was one of the principal figures of the period known as the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration...
1908, Scott himself 1911 and Shackleton's Ross Sea Party
Ross Sea Party
The Ross Sea party was a component of Sir Ernest Shackleton's Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition 1914–17. Its task was to lay a series of supply depots across the Great Ice Barrier from the Ross Sea to the Beardmore Glacier, along the polar route established by earlier Antarctic expeditions...
1914-16)used Minna Bluff to position depots and as a critical marker to guide homeward journeys. Because of the state of the ice in its immediate vicinity, the polar route was established some 20 miles to its east, depots being laid on this route within sight of the Bluff.
The researches of George Simpson
George Simpson (meteorologist)
Sir George Clarke Simpson KCB CBE FRS was a British meteorologist, born in Derby, England.-Biography:George Clarke Simpson was born 2 September 1878 in Derby England, the son of Arthur Simpson, a proprietor of a department store in East Street, and Alice Lambton Clarke...
, meteorologist on Scott's Terra Nova Expedition
Terra Nova Expedition
The Terra Nova Expedition , officially the British Antarctic Expedition 1910, was led by Robert Falcon Scott with the objective of being the first to reach the geographical South Pole. Scott and four companions attained the pole on 17 January 1912, to find that a Norwegian team led by Roald...
established that Minna Bluff has an effect on polar weather. The mass of the Bluff deflects eastward the southerly winds which sweep along the Ross Ice Shelf's eastern edge, and this deflection is then divided when the winds reach Ross Island
Ross Island
Ross Island is an island formed by four volcanoes in the Ross Sea near the continent of Antarctica, off the coast of Victoria Land in McMurdo Sound.-Geography:...
some 50 miles further north. One stream sweeps into McMurdo Sound
McMurdo Sound
The ice-clogged waters of Antarctica's McMurdo Sound extend about 55 km long and wide. The sound opens into the Ross Sea to the north. The Royal Society Range rises from sea level to 13,205 feet on the western shoreline. The nearby McMurdo Ice Shelf scribes McMurdo Sound's southern boundary...
, the other goes eastward to Cape Crozier
Cape Crozier
Cape Crozier is the most easterly point of Ross Island in Antarctica. It was discovered in 1841 during James Clark Ross's expedition with HMS Erebus and HMS Terror, and was named after Francis Crozier, captain of HMS Terror...
. This division of the wind direction is, among other consequences, the cause of the "windless bight" area on the southern coast of Ross Island, an exceptionally cold area of fogs and low winds, encountered on various land journeys between McMurdo Sound and Cape Crozier
Cape Crozier
Cape Crozier is the most easterly point of Ross Island in Antarctica. It was discovered in 1841 during James Clark Ross's expedition with HMS Erebus and HMS Terror, and was named after Francis Crozier, captain of HMS Terror...
undertaken on Scott's two expeditions.
The bluff is often regarded as the southernmost point of Victoria Land
Victoria Land
Victoria Land is a region of Antarctica bounded on the east by the Ross Ice Shelf and the Ross Sea and on the west by Oates Land and Wilkes Land. It was discovered by Captain James Clark Ross in January 1841 and named after the UK's Queen Victoria...
, and separates the Scott Coast
Scott Coast
Scott Coast is that portion of the coast of Victoria Land between Cape Washington and Minna Bluff. Named by New Zealand Antarctic Place-Names Committee in 1961 after Captain Robert Falcon Scott, Royal Navy, leader of the Discovery expedition and the British Antarctic Expedition , who lost his...
to the north from the Hillary Coast
Hillary Coast
Hillary Coast is that portion of the coast along the west margin of the Ross Ice Shelf between Minna Bluff and Cape Selborne. Named by New Zealand Antarctic Place-Names Committee in 1961 for Sir Edmund Hillary, leader of the New Zealand Party of the Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition, 1956-58...
of the Ross Dependency to the south.
Minna Hook is a massive hook-shaped volcanic feature, 9 nautical miles (17 km) long and rising to 1115 m, that forms the southeast termination of the 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"....
named Minna Bluff
Minna Bluff
Minna Bluff is a rocky promontory at the eastern end of a volcanic Antarctic peninsula projecting deep into the Ross Ice Shelf at . It forms a long, narrow arm which culminates in a south-pointing hook feature , and is the subject of research into Antarctic cryosphere history, funded by the...
at the south end of Scott Coast
Scott Coast
Scott Coast is that portion of the coast of Victoria Land between Cape Washington and Minna Bluff. Named by New Zealand Antarctic Place-Names Committee in 1961 after Captain Robert Falcon Scott, Royal Navy, leader of the Discovery expedition and the British Antarctic Expedition , who lost his...
. The name derives from Minna Bluff and was first used in a geologic sketch map and report by Anne Wright-Grassham, 1987.
Minna Saddle is a sweeping snow saddle, several miles long and wide, at the junction of Minna Bluff
Minna Bluff
Minna Bluff is a rocky promontory at the eastern end of a volcanic Antarctic peninsula projecting deep into the Ross Ice Shelf at . It forms a long, narrow arm which culminates in a south-pointing hook feature , and is the subject of research into Antarctic cryosphere history, funded by the...
and the east slopes of Mount Discovery
Mount Discovery
Mount Discovery is a conspicuous, isolated stratovolcano, lying at the head of McMurdo Sound and east of Koettlitz Glacier, overlooking the NW portion of the Ross Ice Shelf...
. Named in 1958 for its association with Minna Bluff by the New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
party of the Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition
Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition
The 1955–58 Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition was a Commonwealth-sponsored expedition that successfully completed the first overland crossing of Antarctica, via the South Pole...
, 1956-58.