The Skelton Inlet is an ice-filled inlet

Inlet

An inlet is a narrow body of water between islands or leading inland from a larger body of water, often leading to an enclosed body of water, such as a sound, bay, lagoon or marsh. In sea coasts an inlet usually refers to the actual connection between a bay and the ocean and is often called an...

 at the terminus of the Skelton Glacier

Skelton Glacier

Skelton Glacier is a large glacier flowing from the polar plateau into the Ross Ice Shelf at Skelton Inlet on the Hillary Coast, south of Victoria Land, Antarctica.-Discovery and naming:...

, along the western edge of the Ross Ice Shelf

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...

 in Antarctica. The feature is about 16 km (10 mi) wide at the entry points between Cape Timberlake

Cape Timberlake

Cape Timberlake is a bold cape at the west side of the mouth of Skelton Glacier. Named by Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names in 1964 for Lieutenant Commander Lewis G. Timberlake, U.S. Navy, public works officer at McMurdo Station, 1962....

 and Fishtail Point

Fishtail Point

Fishtail Point is the southernmost point of Shults Peninsula, at the east side of the mouth of Skelton Glacier. Surveyed and given this descriptive name in 1957 by the New Zealand party of the Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition ....

, where it is about 1500 m deep. Its deepest point is 1933 m below sea level. It was discovered by the British National Antarctic Expedition (BrNAE), 1901–04, which named this feature for Lt. Reginald W. Skelton (Royal Navy

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

), chief engineer of the expedition's ship RRS Discovery

RRS Discovery

The RRS Discovery was the last traditional wooden three-masted ship to be built in Britain. Designed for Antarctic research, she was launched in 1901. Her first mission was the British National Antarctic Expedition, carrying Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackleton on their first, successful...

.