Western Base Party
Encyclopedia
The Western Base Party was a successful exploration party of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition
. The eight-man Western Party was deposited by the Aurora
on the Shackleton Ice Shelf
at Queen Mary Land. The leader of the team was Frank Wild
and the party included the geologist Charles Hoadley
.
The party established the Queen Mary Land Station. An early setback was the destruction of the radio mast in the first blizzard. Severe weather impeded activities as did dangerous crevices. The team sent an expedition to into Kaiser Wilhelm II Land
.
The party had no supplies for a second winter. The Western Base Party was collected on February 23, 1913 by the Aurora, with no loss of life.
Drygalski Island
was first sited by the Western Base Party but it wasn't until the return voyage of Australasian Antarctic Expedition that the island was accurately identified.
Australasian Antarctic Expedition
The Australasian Antarctic Expedition was an Australasian scientific team that explored part of Antarctica between 1911 and 1914. It was led by the Australian geologist Douglas Mawson, who was knighted for his achievements in leading the expedition. In 1910 he began to plan an expedition to chart...
. The eight-man Western Party was deposited by the Aurora
Aurora (ship)
SY Aurora was a steam yacht built by Alexander Stephen & Sons Ltd. shipbuilders in Glasgow, Scotland, in 1876, for the Dundee Seal and Whale Fishing Company. Her primary use was whaling in the northern seas, and she was built sturdily enough to withstand the heavy weather and ice that would be...
on the Shackleton Ice Shelf
Shackleton Ice Shelf
Shackleton Ice Shelf is an extensive ice shelf fronting the coast of East Antarctica for about 384 km , projecting seaward about 145 km in the western portion and 64 km in the east. It occupies an area of 33,820 km². It is part of Mawson Sea and separates the Queen Mary Coast to the west from...
at Queen Mary Land. The leader of the team was Frank Wild
Frank Wild
Commander John Robert Francis Wild CBE, RNVR, FRGS , known as Frank Wild, was an explorer...
and the party included the geologist Charles Hoadley
Charles Hoadley
Charles Archibald Brookes Hoadley was an Australian geologist. He graduated from the University of Melbourne in 1911 with a degree in mining engineering, and was a member of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition led by Sir Douglas Mawson from 1911–14. Hoadley was a member of the Western Base Party...
.
The party established the Queen Mary Land Station. An early setback was the destruction of the radio mast in the first blizzard. Severe weather impeded activities as did dangerous crevices. The team sent an expedition to into Kaiser Wilhelm II Land
Kaiser Wilhelm II Land
Kaiser Wilhelm II Land is the part of Antarctica lying between Cape Penck, at 87°43'E, and Cape Filchner, at 91°54'E and is claimed as part of the Australian Antarctic Territory, although this claim is not universally recognized....
.
The party had no supplies for a second winter. The Western Base Party was collected on February 23, 1913 by the Aurora, with no loss of life.
Discoveries
The Western Base Party made a number of discoveries including;- Adams Island
- Bay of WindsBay of WindsThe Bay of Winds is a coastal embayment between Cape Dovers and Avalanche Rocks in Antarctica. It was discovered by the Western Base Party of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition, 1911–14, under Mawson, who so named it because of the almost constant outflow of cold dense air from the plateau into...
- Cape PenckCape PenckCape Penck is an ice-covered point fronting on the West Ice Shelf about 35 miles westnorthwest of Gaussberg, separating the Leopold and Astrid Coast from the Wilhelm II Coast. It was roughly charted by the Western Base Party of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition, 1911-14, under Mawson, and named...
- Cape HoadleyCape HoadleyCape Hoadley is a prominent rock coastal outcrop forming the west portal of the valley occupied by Scott Glacier. Discovered by the Western Base Party of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition under Mawson in November 1912, and named by him for C.A. Hoadley, geologist with the Western Base Party....
- Cape HordernCape HordernCape Hordern is an ice-free cape, overlain by morainic drift, at the northwest end of the Bunger Hills in Antarctica. Probably sighted from Watson Bluff by A.L. Kennedy and other members of the Western Base Party of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition under Mawson, 1911-14, who charted the west...
- Denman GlacierDenman GlacierDenman Glacier is a glacier wide, descending north some , which debouches into Shackleton Ice Shelf east of David Island, Queen Mary Land. It was discovered in November 1912 by the Western Base Party of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition under Sir Douglas Mawson. Mawson named the glacier for...
- Pobeda Ice IslandPobeda Ice IslandPobeda Ice Island, original Russian name остров Победы , is an ice island in the Mawson Sea. It is located off the coast of Queen Mary Land, Australian Antarctic Territory, East Antarctica...
- Farr BayFarr BayFarr Bay is a bay on the coast of Antarctica, 7 miles wide, lying just east of Helen Glacier. It was discovered in November 1912 by the Western Base Party of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition under Mawson. In some early reports the feature was called "Depot Bay". It was later named by Mawson...
(discovered in November 1912) - Henderson IslandHenderson Island (Shackleton Ice Shelf)Henderson Island is an ice-covered island long and rising to , lying southeast of Masson Island within the Shackleton Ice Shelf. Henderson Island is located at . Henderson Island was discovered in August 1912 by the Western Base Party of the Australian Antarctic Expedition under Sir Douglas...
(discovered in August 1912) - Hippo IslandHippo IslandHippo Island is a steep, rocky island, 0.5 nautical miles long, which rises above Shackleton Ice Shelf 1.5 nautical miles north of Delay Point. Discovered by the Western Base Party of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition under Mawson, 1911-l4, who so named it because of its shape....
- Scott Glacier
- Mount SandowMount SandowMount Sandow is a nunatak overlooking the Denman Glacier about 11 miles southwest of Mount Amundsen in Antarctica. It was discovered by the Western Base Party of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition under Mawson, and named by Mawson for Eugen Sandow of London, a patron of the expedition....
- Mount AmundsenMount AmundsenMount Amundsen is a nunatak lying east of Denman Glacier, about 11 statute miles northeast of Mount Sandow. It was discovered by the Western Base Party of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition under Mawson, and named by Mawson for Roald Amundsen, the Norwegian polar explorer, who was the first...
Drygalski Island
Drygalski Island
Drygalski Island is an ice-capped island with a dome about high that is long and rises to in the Davis Sea of the Southern Ocean about north of the coast of Queen Mary Land and north-northeast of Cape Filchner. Drygalski Island is located at and has an elevation of . Drygalski Island has an...
was first sited by the Western Base Party but it wasn't until the return voyage of Australasian Antarctic Expedition that the island was accurately identified.