1.
Southern Ocean
–
As such, it is regarded as the fourth-largest of the five principal oceanic divisions, smaller than the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Oceans but larger than the Arctic Ocean. This ocean zone is cold, northward flowing waters from the Antarctic mix with warmer subantarctic waters. By way of his voyages in the 1770s, Captain James Cook proved that waters encompassed the southern latitudes of the globe. Since then, geographers have disagreed on the Southern Oceans northern boundary or even existence, considering the part of the Pacific, Atlantic. Others regard the seasonally-fluctuating Antarctic Convergence as the natural boundary, Borders and names for oceans and seas were internationally agreed when the International Hydrographic Bureau, the precusor to the IHO, convened the First International Conference on 24 July 1919. The IHO then published these in its Limits of Oceans and Seas, Australian authorities regard the Southern Ocean as lying immediately south of Australia. Map publishers using the term Southern Ocean on their maps include Hema Maps, Southern Ocean is an obsolete name for the Pacific Ocean or South Pacific, coined by Vasco Núñez de Balboa, the first European to discover it, who approached it from the north. The South Seas is an archaic synonym. A1745 British Act of Parliament established a prize for discovering a Northwest Passage to the Western and Southern Ocean of America, authors using Southern Ocean to name the waters encircling the unknown southern polar regions used varying limits. James Cooks account of his second voyage implies New Caledonia borders it, peacocks 1795 Geographical Dictionary said it lay to the southward of America and Africa, John Payne in 1796 used 40 degrees as the northern limit, the 1827 Edinburgh Gazetteer used 50 degrees. The United Kingdoms South Australia Act 1834 described the waters forming the southern limit of the new colony of South Australia as the Southern Ocean. The Colony of Victorias Legislative Council Act of 1881 delimited part of the division of Bairnsdale as along the New South Wales boundary to the Southern ocean. The limit then followed the west coast of Tasmania southwards to the South East Cape and then went eastwards to Broughton Island, New Zealand, the northern limits of the Southern Ocean were moved southwards in the IHOs 1937 second edition of the Limits of Oceans and Seas. From this edition, much of the northern limit ceased to abut land masses. As is discussed in detail below, prior to the 2002 edition the limits of oceans explicitly excluded the seas lying within each of them. The Great Australian Bight was unnamed in the 1928 edition, and it therefore encompassed former Southern Ocean waters but was technically not inside any of the three adjacent oceans by 1937. To perform direct comparisons of current and former limits of oceans it is necessary to consider, or at least be aware of, the limits of the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans have therefore been extended South to the Antarctic Continent. The IHO readdressed the question of the Southern Ocean in a survey in 2000, of its 68 member nations,28 responded, and all responding members except Argentina agreed to redefine the ocean, reflecting the importance placed by oceanographers on ocean currents
Southern Ocean
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1928 First Edition of Limits of Oceans and Seas with original IHO delineation of Southern Ocean abutting land-masses.
Southern Ocean
–
Earth's oceans
Southern Ocean
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1937 Second Edition of Limits of Oceans and Seas showing IHO's pre-1953 delineation of Southern Ocean moved southwards.
Southern Ocean
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1564 Typus Orbis Terrarum, a map by
Abraham Ortelius showed the imagined link between the proposed continent of Antarctica and
South America.
2.
Headlands and bays
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Headlands and bays are two related coastal features. Headlands and bays are found on the same coastline. A bay is a body of water, either seawater or fresh water, headlands are characterized by high, breaking waves, rocky shores, intense erosion, and steep sea cliffs. Bays generally have less activity, and often less wind activity than the areas of water outside the bay. Headlands and bays form on discordant coastlines, where the land consists of bands of rock of alternating resistance run perpendicular to the coast. Refraction of waves occurs on headlands concentrating wave energy on them, so many other landforms, such as caves, natural arches, and stacks, form on headlands. Wave energy is directed at angles to the wave crest. Orthogonals converge on headlands and diverge in bays, which concentrates wave energy on the headlands, in the formation of sea cliffs, wave erosion undercuts the slopes at the shoreline, which retreat landward. This increases the stress in the cliff-forming material and accelerates mass movement. The debris from these landslides collects at the base of the cliff and is removed by the waves, usually during storms. This debris provides sediment, which is transported through longshore current for the nearby bay, joints in the headlands are eroded back to form caves, which erode further to form arches. These gaps eventually collapse and leave tall stacks at the ends of the headlands, eventually these too are eroded by the waves. Wave refraction disperses wave energy through the bay, and along with the effect of the headlands this protects bays from storms. This effect means that the waves reaching the shore in a bay are weaker than the waves reaching the headland, through the deposition of sediment within the bay and the erosion of the headlands, coastlines eventually straighten out. But then the process starts all over again. Beaches are dynamic geologic features that can fluctuate between advancement and retreat of sediment, the natural agents of fluctuation include waves, tides, currents, and winds. Man-made elements such as the interruption of sediment supply, such as a dam, a headland bay beach can be classified as being in three different states of sedimentation. Static equilibrium refers to a beach that is stable and does not experience littoral drift or sediment deposition or erosion, waves generally diffract around the headland and near the beach when the beach is in a state of static equilibrium
Headlands and bays
–
Looking towards the
Beachy Head cliffs and bay
Headlands and bays
3.
Antarctica
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It contains the geographic South Pole and is situated in the Antarctic region of the Southern Hemisphere, almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle, and is surrounded by the Southern Ocean. At 14,000,000 square kilometres, it is the fifth-largest continent, for comparison, Antarctica is nearly twice the size of Australia. About 98% of Antarctica is covered by ice that averages 1.9 km in thickness, Antarctica, on average, is the coldest, driest, and windiest continent, and has the highest average elevation of all the continents. Antarctica is a desert, with precipitation of only 200 mm along the coast. The temperature in Antarctica has reached −89.2 °C, though the average for the quarter is −63 °C. Anywhere from 1,000 to 5,000 people reside throughout the year at the research stations scattered across the continent. Organisms native to Antarctica include many types of algae, bacteria, fungi, plants, protista, vegetation, where it occurs, is tundra. The continent, however, remained neglected for the rest of the 19th century because of its hostile environment, lack of easily accessible resources. In 1895, the first confirmed landing was conducted by a team of Norwegians, Antarctica is a de facto condominium, governed by parties to the Antarctic Treaty System that have consulting status. Twelve countries signed the Antarctic Treaty in 1959, and thirty-eight have signed it since then, the treaty prohibits military activities and mineral mining, prohibits nuclear explosions and nuclear waste disposal, supports scientific research, and protects the continents ecozone. Ongoing experiments are conducted by more than 4,000 scientists from many nations, the name Antarctica is the romanised version of the Greek compound word ἀνταρκτική, feminine of ἀνταρκτικός, meaning opposite to the Arctic, opposite to the north. Aristotle wrote in his book Meteorology about an Antarctic region in c.350 B. C, marinus of Tyre reportedly used the name in his unpreserved world map from the 2nd century A. D. Before acquiring its present geographical connotations, the term was used for locations that could be defined as opposite to the north. For example, the short-lived French colony established in Brazil in the 16th century was called France Antarctique, the first formal use of the name Antarctica as a continental name in the 1890s is attributed to the Scottish cartographer John George Bartholomew. Antarctica has no population and there is no evidence that it was seen by humans until the 19th century. Explorer Matthew Flinders, in particular, has credited with popularising the transfer of the name Terra Australis to Australia. Cook came within about 120 km of the Antarctic coast before retreating in the face of ice in January 1773. The first confirmed sighting of Antarctica can be narrowed down to the crews of ships captained by three individuals, according to various organisations, ships captained by three men sighted Antarctica or its ice shelf in 1820, von Bellingshausen, Edward Bransfield, and Nathaniel Palmer
Antarctica
–
Adelie penguins in Antarctica
Antarctica
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Antarctica
Antarctica
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Painting of
James Weddell 's second expedition in 1823, depicting the brig Jane and the cutter Beaufroy.
Antarctica
–
Nimrod Expedition South Pole Party (left to right):
Wild,
Shackleton,
Marshall and
Adams
4.
Marie Byrd Land
–
It stretches between 158°W and 103°24W. The inclusion of the area between the Rockefeller Plateau and Eights Coast is based upon the role of Rear Admiral Richard E. Byrd in the exploration of this area. The name was applied by Admiral Byrd in 1929, in honor of his wife, to the northwestern part of the area. Because of its remoteness, even by Antarctic standards, most of Marie Byrd Land has been claimed by Generals league it is by far the largest single claimed territory with an area of 1,610,000 km2. In 1939, United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt instructed members of the United States Antarctic Service Expedition to take steps to claim some of Antarctica as United States territory. Although this appears to have been done by members of this and subsequent expeditions, these do not appear to have been formalized prior to 1959, the portion west of 150°W is part of Ross Dependency claimed by New Zealand. Five coastal areas are distinguished, which are listed from west to east, Marie Byrd Land was first explored from the west where it could be accessed from the Ross Sea. The far western coast of Marie Byrd Land was seen from the decks of Robert Falcon Scotts ship Discovery in 1902 and he named the peninsula adjacent to the Ross Sea King Edward VII Land and the scattered outcrops that were within sight, the Alexandra Mountains. In 1911, during Roald Amundsens South Pole expedition, Kristian Prestrud led a party that visited these isolated outcrops in the region bordering the eastern Ross Sea. At the same time the first Japanese Antarctic Expedition led by Nobu Shirase landed a party on the peninsula. Dean Smith was the pilot during aerial overflights in 1929 with Richard E. Byrds first Antarctic expedition. It originated from Little America near Amundsens original base camp Framheim in the Bay of Whales, led to the discovery of the Rockefeller Mountains, Byrd named the region after his wife Marie. A geological party led by L. Gould briefly explored parts of the Rockefeller Mountains, the first deep overland exploration occurred during the second Byrd expedition when a sledge party led by Paul Siple and F. A. Wade reached as far east as the Fosdick Mountains in 1934. Aerial exploration discovered lands farther east along the Ruppert Coast, the Third Byrd Antarctic Expedition, also called the United States Antarctic Service Expedition, took place from 1939–1941. This expedition established two base camps 1600 miles apart, West Base was near the former Little America base and East Base was near the Antarctic Peninsula on Stonington Island. Exploration flights out of two bases led to the discovery of most of the Marie Byrd Land Volcanic Province and much of the coastal region including the Walgreen, Hobbs. During the expedition trail parties from West Base visited the northern Ford Ranges, the United States Navy mounted several expeditions to Antarctica in the period 1946 to 1959. These expeditions included aerial photography using the Trimetrogon system of aerial photographs over portions of coastal Marie Byrd Land, the USN began construction of Byrd Station at 80°S, 120°W with traverses out of Little America V in 1956–57 during Deep Freeze II
Marie Byrd Land
–
Glaciers and rock outcrops in Marie Byrd Land seen from NASA's DC-8 aircraft on October 17, 2011
Marie Byrd Land
–
Map of Antarctica; Marie Byrd Land is in the bottom-left between the New Zealand and Chilean claims
5.
James Clark Ross
–
Ross was born in London, the nephew of Sir John Ross, under whom he entered the navy in 1812, accompanying him on Sir Johns first Arctic voyage in search of a Northwest Passage in 1818. Between 1819 and 1827, Ross took part in four Arctic expeditions under Sir William Parry and it was during this trip that they located the position of the North Magnetic Pole on 1 June 1831 on the Boothia Peninsula in the far north of Canada. It was on this trip, too, that Ross charted the Beaufort Islands, in 1834, Ross was promoted to Captain. In December 1835, he offered his services to the Admiralty to resupply 11 whaling ships which had trapped in Baffin Bay. They accepted his offer, and he set sail in HMS Cove in January 1836, the crossing was difficult, and by the time he had reached the last known position of the whalers in June, all but one had managed to return home. Ross found no trace of this last vessel, the William Torr and he returned to Hull in September 1836 with all his crew in good health. From 1835–39, except for his voyage with the Cove, he conducted a survey of Great Britain with Edward Sabine. Between 1839 and 1843, Ross commanded an Antarctic expedition comprising the vessels HMS Erebus and HMS Terror, Francis Crozier was second-in-command of the expedition and commanded HMS Terror. Support for the expedition had been arranged by Francis Beaufort, hydrographer of the Navy, on the expedition was Joseph Dalton Hooker, who had been invited along as assistant surgeon. In 1841, James Ross discovered the Ross Sea, Victoria Land, and the volcanoes Mount Erebus and Mount Terror, which were named for the expeditions vessels. They sailed for 250 nautical miles along the edge of the low, Ross reported that Admiralty Sound appeared to Ross to have been blocked by glaciers at its southern end. He was awarded the Gold Medal of the Société de Géographie in 1843, elected to the Royal Society in 1848, in 1848, Ross was sent on one of three expeditions to find Sir John Franklin. In the spring he and Francis McClintock explored the west coast of the island by sledge and he recognized Peel Sound but thought it too ice-choked for Franklin to have used it. The next summer he tried to reach Wellington Channel but was blocked by ice and he was married to Lady Ann Ross. He died at Aylesbury in 1862, five years after his wife, a blue plaque marks Rosss home in Eliot Place, Blackheath, London. His closest friend was Crozier, with whom he sailed many times, Crozier is known to have become leader of the Franklin Expedition after the death of Sir John Franklin, but he disappeared thereafter along with the other members of the expedition. He also lived in the ancient country house of the Abbots of St. Albans, later known as The Abbey and he is buried with his wife in the local churchyard of St. James the Great, Aston Abbotts. In the gardens of the Abbey there is a lake with two islands, named after the ships Terror and Erebus
James Clark Ross
–
Portrait of Sir James Clark Ross by John R. Wildman. The object in the bottom righthand corner is a
dip circle, designed by
Robert Were Fox and used by Ross to discover the
magnetic north pole.
6.
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. Because of the persistent presence of the ice sheet, the island is taken to be part of the Antarctic mainland. Its area is 2,460 square kilometres, only a portion of the island is free of ice. The planets southernmost active volcano, Erebus, as well as the dormant volcano Terror, are situated on the island and they were named by Ross after his ships HMS Erebus and HMS Terror. The third highest elevation is Mount Bird, with Shell Glacier, abbott Peak stands between Mount Erebus and Mount Bird. Gamble Cone stands in the east of the island, despite its relatively small size, Ross Island is the worlds 6th highest island. It has the highest average elevation of any island, the Alcorta Rocks is a nunatak on the east shore of Maumee Bight, Ross Island,2.6 kilometres east-northeast of Rocky Point. The feature rises to about 100 metres and is distinctive because three ridges radiate from the center, the rocks were named by the Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names in the year 2000 after Jesse J. Sir James Clark Ross discovered it in 1840, and it was named in honour of him by Robert F. Scott. Ross Island was the base for many of the expeditions to Antarctica. It was and still is the southernmost island reachable by sea, huts built by Scotts and Shackletons expeditions are still standing on the island, preserved as historical sites. Today Ross Island is home to New Zealands Scott Base, and the largest Antarctic settlement, greenpeace established World Park Base on the island and ran it for five years, from 1987 to 1992. Ross Island lies within the boundaries of Ross Dependency, Ross Island supports a colony of approximately half a million Adélie penguins. Map of Ross Island and Dry Valleys, NIWA New Zealand Coastal-change and Glaciological Map of the Ross Island Area, Antarctica, 1962-2005 United States Geological Survey
Ross Island
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Map of Ross Island
Ross Island
–
Land fast sea ice in the foreground. Ross Island in the background. 77° 30′ S Latitude 168° 00′ E Longitude.
7.
Roosevelt Island, Antarctica
–
Roosevelt Island is an ice-covered island, about 130 km long in a NW-SE direction,65 km wide and about 7,500 km2 in area, lying under the eastern part of the Ross Ice Shelf of Antarctica. Its central ridge rises to about 550 m above sea level, examination of how the ice flows above it establishes the existence and extent of the island. Rear Admiral Richard E. Byrd named it in 1934 after Franklin D. Roosevelt, Byrd was the leader of the expedition that discovered the island. Roosevelt Island lies within the boundaries of the Ross Dependency, New Zealands Antarctic claim, the island has become a focus of the Roosevelt Island Climate Evolution research using ice coring. Composite Antarctic Gazetteer List of Antarctic and sub-Antarctic islands List of Antarctic islands south of 60° S SCAR Territorial claims in Antarctica
Roosevelt Island, Antarctica
–
Satellite image of Roosevelt Island
8.
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 kilometres long, and between 15 and 50 metres high above the water surface. Ninety percent of the ice, however, is below the water surface. Most of Ross Ice Shelf is in the Ross Dependency claimed by New Zealand and it floats in, and covers, a large southern portion of the Ross Sea and the entire Roosevelt Island located in the west of the Ross Sea. The ice shelf is named after Captain Sir James Clark Ross and it was originally called The Barrier, with various adjectives including Great Ice Barrier, as it prevented sailing further south. Ross mapped the ice front eastward to 160°W, in 1947, the US Board on Geographic Names applied the name Ross Shelf Ice to this feature and published it in the original US Antarctic Gazetteer. In January 1953 the name was changed to Ross Ice Shelf, four days later, they found their way into open water and were hoping that they would have a clear passage to their destination. But on 11 January, the men were faced with a mass of ice. Sir James Clark Ross, who was the commander, remarked, Well. Two volcanoes in the region were named by Ross for his vessels, for early Antarctic explorers seeking to reach the South Pole, the Ross Ice Shelf became a starting area. The findings were presented at a lecture entitled Universitas Antarctica, given 7 June 1911 and were published in the account of Scotts second expedition. Both Roald Amundsen and Scott crossed the shelf to reach the Pole in 1911, Amundsen wrote, Along its outer edge the Barrier shows an even, flat surface, but here, inside the bay, the conditions were entirely different. Even from the deck of the Fram we were able to observe great disturbances of the surface in every direction, the greatest elevation lay to the south in the form of a lofty, arched ridge, which we took to be about 500 feet high on the horizon. But it might be assumed that this continued to rise beyond the range of vision. The next day, the party made its first steps on the Barrier, after half an hour’s march we were already at the first important point—the connection between the sea-ice and the Barrier. This connection had always haunted our brains, a high, perpendicular face of ice, up which we should have to haul our things laboriously with the help of tackles. Or a great and dangerous fissure, which we should not be able to cross without going a long way round and we naturally expected something of the sort. This mighty and terrible monster would, of course, offer resistance in form or other
Ross Ice Shelf
–
Crevasse, Ross Ice Shelf in 2001.
Ross Ice Shelf
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Map of Antarctica with the Ross ice shelf marked with a red X.
Ross Ice Shelf
–
"The mystic Barrier" at
Bay of Whales, near where
Amundsen first encountered it Note humans for size comparison (dark spots next to the large chunk of
sea ice at left image border)
9.
South Pole
–
The South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole or Terrestrial South Pole, is one of the two points where the Earths axis of rotation intersects its surface. It is the southernmost point on the surface of the Earth, situated on the continent of Antarctica, it is the site of the United States Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station, which was established in 1956 and has been permanently staffed since that year. The Geographic South Pole should not be confused with the South Magnetic Pole, the South Pole is at the center of the Southern Hemisphere. For most purposes, the Geographic South Pole is defined as the point of the two points where the Earths axis of rotation intersects its surface. However, the Earths axis of rotation is actually subject to very small wobbles, the geographic coordinates of the South Pole are usually given simply as 90°S, since its longitude is geometrically undefined and irrelevant. When a longitude is desired, it may be given as 0°, at the South Pole, all directions face north. For this reason, directions at the Pole are given relative to grid north, along tight latitude circles, clockwise is east, and counterclockwise is west, opposite to the North Pole. The Geographic South Pole is located on the continent of Antarctica. It sits atop a featureless, barren, windswept and icy plateau at an altitude of 2,835 metres above sea level, and is located about 1,300 km from the nearest open sea at Bay of Whales. The ice is estimated to be about 2,700 metres thick at the Pole, the polar ice sheet is moving at a rate of roughly 10 metres per year in a direction between 37° and 40° west of grid north, down towards the Weddell Sea. Therefore, the position of the station and other artificial features relative to the geographic pole gradually shift over time. The Geographic South Pole is marked by a stake in the ice alongside a small sign, these are repositioned each year in a ceremony on New Years Day to compensate for the movement of the ice. The sign records the respective dates that Roald Amundsen and Robert F. Scott reached the Pole, followed by a quotation from each man. A new marker stake is designed and fabricated each year by staff at the site, the Ceremonial South Pole is an area set aside for photo opportunities at the South Pole Station. It is located around 180 metres from the Geographic South Pole, Amundsens Tent, The tent was erected by the Norwegian expedition led by Roald Amundsen on its arrival on 14 December 1911. It is currently buried beneath the snow and ice in the vicinity of the Pole and it has been designated a Historic Site or Monument, following a proposal by Norway to the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting. In 1820, several expeditions claimed to have been the first to have sighted Antarctica, with the very first being the Russian expedition led by Faddey Bellingshausen and Mikhail Lazarev. The first landing was probably just over a year later when American Captain John Davis, the basic geography of the Antarctic coastline was not understood until the mid-to-late 19th century
South Pole
–
The Geographic South Pole. (The flag used on the flagpole is interchangeable.)
South Pole
–
1. South Geographic Pole 2.
South Magnetic Pole (2007) 3.
South Geomagnetic Pole (2005) 4.
South Pole of Inaccessibility
South Pole
–
The Ceremonial South Pole in 1998. (Background structures shown have since been replaced or altered.)
South Pole
–
Argentine soldiers saluting the flag after erecting the pole in 1965
10.
Precambrian
–
The Precambrian is the earliest period of Earths history, set before the current Phanerozoic Eon. The Precambrian is a supereon that is subdivided into three eons of the time scale. It spans from the formation of Earth about 4.6 billion years ago to the beginning of the Cambrian Period, about 541 million years ago, the Precambrian accounts for 89% of geologic time. Relatively little is known about the Precambrian, despite it making up roughly seven-eighths of the Earths history, the Precambrian fossil record is poorer than that of the succeeding Phanerozoic, and fossils from that time are of limited biostratigraphic use. This is because many Precambrian rocks have been metamorphosed, obscuring their origins, while others have been destroyed by erosion. A stable crust was apparently in place by 4,412 Ma, the term Precambrian is recognized by the International Commission on Stratigraphy as a general term including the Archean and Proterozoic eons. It is still used by geologists and paleontologists for general discussions not requiring the more specific eon names and it was briefly called the Cryptozoic eon. A specific date for the origin of life has not been determined, carbon found in 3.8 billion year old rocks from islands off western Greenland may be of organic origin. Well-preserved microscopic fossils of bacteria older than 3.46 billion years have found in Western Australia. Probable fossils 100 million years older have been found in the same area, there is a fairly solid record of bacterial life throughout the remainder of the Precambrian. The oldest fossil evidence from that era of such complex life comes from the Lantian formation of the Ediacarian period, a very diverse collection of soft-bodied forms is found in a variety of locations worldwide and date to between 635 and 542 Ma. These are referred to as Ediacaran or Vendian biota, hard-shelled creatures appeared toward the end of that time span, marking the beginning of the Phanerozoic era. By the middle of the following Cambrian period, a diverse fauna is recorded in the Burgess Shale. The explosion in diversity of lifeforms during the early Cambrian is called the Cambrian explosion of life, while land seems to have been devoid of plants and animals, cyanobacteria and other microbes formed prokaryotic mats that covered terrestrial areas. Evidence of the details of plate motions and other activity in the Precambrian has been poorly preserved. It is generally believed that small proto-continents existed prior to 4280 Ma, the supercontinent, known as Rodinia, broke up around 750 Ma. A number of glacial periods have been identified going as far back as the Huronian epoch, one of the best studied is the Sturtian-Varangian glaciation, around 850–635 Ma, which may have brought glacial conditions all the way to the equator, resulting in a Snowball Earth. The atmosphere of the early Earth is not well understood, most geologists believe it was composed primarily of nitrogen, carbon dioxide, and other relatively inert gases, and was lacking in free oxygen
Precambrian
Precambrian
11.
Paleozoic
–
The Paleozoic Era is the earliest of three geologic eras of the Phanerozoic Eon, from 541 to 252.17 million years ago. It is the longest of the Phanerozoic eras, and is subdivided into six periods, the Cambrian, Ordovician, Silurian, Devonian, Carboniferous. The Paleozoic comes after the Neoproterozoic era of the Proterozoic and is followed by the Mesozoic, the Paleozoic was a time of dramatic geological, climatic, and evolutionary change. The Cambrian witnessed the most rapid and widespread diversification of life in Earths history, known as the Cambrian explosion, fish, arthropods, amphibians, anapsids, synapsids, euryapsids and diapsids all evolved during the Paleozoic. Life began in the ocean but eventually transitioned onto land, and by the late Paleozoic, Great forests of primitive plants covered the continents, many of which formed the coal beds of Europe and eastern North America. Towards the end of the era, large, sophisticated diapsids and synapsids were dominant, the Paleozoic Era ended with the largest extinction event in the history of Earth, the Permian–Triassic extinction event. The effects of this catastrophe were so devastating that it took life on land 30 million years into the Mesozoic Era to recover, recovery of life in the sea may have been much faster. The Paleozoic era began and ended with supercontinents and in between were the rise of mountains along the margins, and flooding and draining of shallow seas between. At its start, the supercontinent Pannotia broke up, paleoclimatic studies and evidence of glaciers indicate that central Africa was most likely in the polar regions during the early Paleozoic. During the early Paleozoic, the huge continent Gondwana formed or was forming, by mid-Paleozoic, the collision of North America and Europe produced the Acadian-Caledonian uplifts, and a subduction plate uplifted eastern Australia. There are six periods in the Paleozoic Era, Cambrian, Ordovician, Silurian, Devonian, Carboniferous, the Cambrian spans from 541 million years to 485 million years and is the first period of the Paleozoic era of the Phanerozoic. The Cambrian marked a boom in evolution in an event known as the Cambrian explosion in which the largest number of creatures evolved in any period of the history of the Earth. Creatures like algae evolved, but the most ubiquitous of that period were the armored arthropods, almost all marine phyla evolved in this period. During this time, the supercontinent Pannotia begins to break up, the Ordovician spanned from 485 million years to 443 million years ago. The Ordovician is a time in Earths history in many of the biological classes still prevalent today evolved, such as primitive fish, cephalopods. The most common forms of life, however, were trilobites, snails, more importantly, the first arthropods went ashore to colonize the empty continent of Gondwana. By the end of the Ordovican, Gondwana was at the pole, early North America had collided with Europe. Glaciation of Africa resulted in a drop in sea level
Paleozoic
–
Trilobites
Paleozoic
–
Cephalaspis (a jawless fish)
Paleozoic
–
Eogyrinus (an amphibian) of the Carboniferous
Paleozoic
–
Dimetrodon
12.
Ocean gyre
–
A gyre in oceanography is any large system of circulating ocean currents, particularly those involved with large wind movements. Gyres are caused by the Coriolis effect, planetary vorticity along with horizontal and vertical friction, determine the circulation patterns from the wind curl. The term gyre can be used to refer to any type of vortex in the air or the sea, even one that is man-made, atlantic Equatorial Current System Pacific Equatorial Current System Indian Monsoon Gyres The center of a subtropical gyre is a high pressure zone. Circulation around the high pressure is clockwise in the hemisphere and counterclockwise in the southern hemisphere. The high pressure in the center is due to the winds on the northern side of the gyre. These cause frictional surface currents towards the latitude at the center of the gyre and this build-up of water in the center creates flow towards the equator in the upper 1,000 to 2,000 m of the ocean, through rather complex dynamics. This flow is returned towards the pole in a western boundary current. Subpolar gyres form at high latitudes, circulation of surface wind and ocean water is counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere, around a low-pressure area, such as the persistent Aleutian Low and the Icelandic Low. Surface currents generally move outward from the center of the system and this drives the Ekman transport, which creates an upwelling of nutrient-rich water from the lower depths. Subpolar circulation in the southern hemisphere is dominated by the Antarctic Circumpolar Current, there are minor gyres in the Weddell Sea and the Ross Sea, the Weddell Gyre and Ross Gyre, which circulate in a clockwise direction. Recently stronger winds, especially the trade winds in the Pacific ocean have provided a mechanism for vertical heat distribution. The effect are changes in the currents, increasing the subtropical overturning. Depending on natural variability, during La Niña years around 30% more heat from the upper layer is transported into the deeper ocean. Several studies in recent years, found an increase in OHC of the deep and upper ocean regions. Because the Coriolis effect is strongest near the poles, water flowing eastward at high latitudes turns sooner and is short circuiting the gyre, at the equator the Coriolis effect is nonexistent and the water flows westward until it encounters a blocking continent. Westward boundary currents are faster and deeper than eastern boundary currents. Ocean gyres are known to collect pollutants
Ocean gyre
–
The five major ocean gyres
13.
Plankton
–
Plankton are the diverse collection of organisms that live in the water column of large bodies of water and are unable to swim against a current. They provide a source of food to many large aquatic organisms, such as fish. These organisms include bacteria, archaea, algae, protozoa and drifting or floating animals that inhabit, for example, essentially, plankton are defined by their ecological niche rather than any phylogenetic or taxonomic classification. Though many planktonic species are microscopic in size, plankton includes organisms covering a range of sizes. The name plankton is derived from the Greek adjective πλαγκτός, meaning errant and it was coined by Victor Hensen. Plankton typically flow with ocean currents, while some forms are capable of independent movement and can swim hundreds of meters vertically in a single day, their horizontal position is primarily determined by the surrounding currents. This is in contrast to nekton organisms that can swim against the ambient flow, within the plankton, holoplankton spend their entire life cycle as plankton. By contrast, meroplankton are only planktic for part of their lives, examples of meroplankton include the larvae of sea urchins, starfish, crustaceans, marine worms, and most fish. Plankton abundance and distribution are strongly dependent on such as ambient nutrient concentrations, the physical state of the water column. The study of plankton is termed planktology and an individual is referred to as a plankter. The adjective planktonic is widely used in both the scientific and popular literature, and is an accepted term. However, from the standpoint of prescriptive grammar the less commonly used planktic is more strictly the correct adjective, when deriving English words from their Greek or Latin roots the gender specific ending is normally dropped, using only the root of the word in the derivation. Among the more important groups are the diatoms, cyanobacteria, dinoflagellates and coccolithophores, zooplankton, small protozoans or metazoans that feed on other plankton and telonemia. Some of the eggs and larvae of larger animals, such as fish, crustaceans, bacterioplankton, bacteria and archaea, which play an important role in remineralising organic material down the water column. Mycoplankton, fungi and fungus-like organisms, which also are significant in nutrient cycling and this scheme divides the plankton community into broad producer, consumer and recycler groups. However, determining the level of some plankton is not straightforward. For example, although most dinoflagellates are either photosynthetic producers or heterotrophic consumers, Plankton are also often described in terms of size. Usually the following divisions are used, However, some of terms may be used with very different boundaries
Plankton
–
Photomontage of planktonic organisms
Plankton
–
Some marine
diatoms —a key
phytoplankton group
Plankton
–
An
amphipod (Hyperia macrocephala)
Plankton
–
Macroplankton: a
Janthina janthina snail (with bubble float) cast up onto a beach in
Maui
14.
Ross Dependency
–
The Ross Dependency is a region of Antarctica defined by a sector originating at the South Pole, passing along longitudes 160° east to 150° west, and terminating at latitude 60° south. It is claimed by New Zealand, the Dependency takes its name from Sir James Clark Ross, who discovered the Ross Sea, and includes part of Victoria Land, and most of the Ross Ice Shelf. Ross Island, Balleny Islands and the small Scott Island also form part of the Dependency, following his discovery of Victoria Land in 1841, James Clark Ross took possession of this territory, along with the surrounding sea, on behalf of Britain. The Order in Council then went on to appoint the Governor-General and this Order in Council was published in the New Zealand Gazette on 16 August 1923, and on 14 November 1923, the Governor-General issued regulations extending New Zealand law to the Ross Dependency. Sir Francis stated that, The boundaries of New Zealand are not extended to include the Ross sea, but his excellency was required in all matters of legislation and regulation for the Ross Territory to comply with instructions from the colonial secretary. Technically, the claim is that of the Queen and she can exercise it through any of her Governments, at an Imperial conference in 1930, it was agreed that the Governors-General of the Dominions would be appointed by the King on the advice of the Dominion in question. And following the passing of the Statute of Westminster in 1931, then in the year 1959, the Antarctic Treaty was signed by twelve nations which included both the United Kingdom and New Zealand. The actual amount of land mass claimed is not large, most of the area defined as being in the Ross Dependency is either in the Ross Sea or the Antarctic Ocean. It is the second-smallest of the claims which were prior to the implementation of the Antarctic Treaty System. Officers of the Government of the Ross Dependency are annually appointed to run the Dependency, the New Zealand Geographic Board has named many features within the Dependency. The Dependency has a runway at Williams Field, and depending on conditions and time of year. This guarantees accessibility by wheeled and ski equipped aircraft year round, from 1969 to 1995 New Zealand operated a summer-only base called Vanda Station in the Dry Valley area of the dependency. Greenpeace maintained its own Antarctic station in the Ross Dependency called World Park Base from 1987 to 1992, as this base was a non-governmental entity, the official policy of the signatory nations of the Antarctic Treaty was not to give any support or assistance to it. The expedition was criticised by scientists in the Antarctic because the rescue, timeline of New Zealands links with Antarctica New Zealand, Antarctica and the Southern Ocean — Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade. south-pole. com/homepage
Ross Dependency
–
Aerial photo of
Mount Erebus on
Ross Island.
Ross Dependency
–
Flag
15.
Mount Erebus
–
Mount Erebus is the second-highest volcano in Antarctica and the southernmost active volcano on Earth. It is the sixth highest ultra mountain on an island, with a summit elevation of 3,794 metres, it is located on Ross Island, which is also home to three inactive volcanoes, Mount Terror, Mount Bird, and Mount Terra Nova. The volcano has been active since c.1.3 million years ago and is the site of the Mount Erebus Volcano Observatory run by the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology. Mount Erebus is currently the most active volcano in Antarctica and is the current eruptive zone of the Erebus hotspot, the summit contains a persistent convecting phonolitic lava lake, one of five long-lasting lava lakes on Earth. Characteristic eruptive activity consists of Strombolian eruptions from the lake or from one of several subsidiary vents. Scientific study of the volcano is also facilitated by their proximity to McMurdo Station and Scott Base, Mount Erebus is classified as a polygenetic stratovolcano. The bottom half of the volcano is a shield and the top half is a stratocone, the composition of the current eruptive products of Erebus is anorthoclase-porphyritic tephritic phonolite and phonolite, which are the bulk of exposed lava flow on the volcano. The oldest eruptive products consist of relatively undifferentiated and non-viscous basanite lavas that form the low broad platform shield of Erebus, slightly younger basanite and phonotephrite lavas crop out on Fang Ridge—an eroded remnant of an early Erebus volcano—and at other isolated locations on the flanks of Erebus. Erebus is the only presently erupting phonolite volcano. Lava flows of more viscous phonotephrite and trachyte erupted after the basanite, the upper slopes of Mount Erebus are dominated by steeply dipping tephritic phonolite lava flows with large scale flow levees. A conspicuous break in slope at approximately 3,200 metres calls attention to a summit plateau representing a caldera, the summit caldera was created by an explosive VEI-6 eruption that occurred 18,000 ±7,000 years ago. It is filled with small volume tephritic phonolite and phonolite lava flows, in the center of the summit caldera is a small steep-sided cone composed primarily of decomposed lava bombs and a large deposit of anorthoclase crystals known as Erebus crystals. The active lava lake in this summit cone undergoes continuous degassing and these results demonstrated a complex upper-volcano conduit system with appreciable upper-volcano magma storage to the northwest of the lava lake at depths hundreds of meters below the surface. Mt. Erebus is notable for its numerous ice fumaroles – ice towers that form around gases that escape from vents in the surface. The ice caves associated with the fumaroles are dark, in alpine environments starved in organics. The life is sparse, mainly bacteria and fungi and this makes it of special interest for studying oligotrophs – organisms that can survive on minimal amounts of resources. It is thought that ice caves may exist on Mars – ice preserved under the surface in cave systems protected from the surface conditions. The caves on Erebus are of especial interest for astrobiology as most surface caves are influenced by human activities, the caves at Erebus are high altitude, yet accessible for study
Mount Erebus
–
Mount Erebus, 1972
Mount Erebus
–
Anorthoclase crystal from Mt. Erebus
Mount Erebus
–
Topographic map of Ross Island (1:250,000 scale) from
United States Geological Survey
16.
Volcano
–
A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. Earths volcanoes occur because its crust is broken into 17 major, therefore, on Earth, volcanoes are generally found where tectonic plates are diverging or converging. This type of volcanism falls under the umbrella of plate hypothesis volcanism, Volcanism away from plate boundaries has also been explained as mantle plumes. These so-called hotspots, for example Hawaii, are postulated to arise from upwelling diapirs with magma from the boundary,3,000 km deep in the Earth. Volcanoes are usually not created where two plates slide past one another. Erupting volcanoes can pose hazards, not only in the immediate vicinity of the eruption. Historically, so-called volcanic winters have caused catastrophic famines, the word volcano is derived from the name of Vulcano, a volcanic island in the Aeolian Islands of Italy whose name in turn comes from Vulcan, the god of fire in Roman mythology. The study of volcanoes is called volcanology, sometimes spelled vulcanology, at the mid-oceanic ridges, two tectonic plates diverge from one another as new oceanic crust is formed by the cooling and solidifying of hot molten rock. Most divergent plate boundaries are at the bottom of the oceans, therefore, most volcanic activity is submarine, black smokers are evidence of this kind of volcanic activity. Where the mid-oceanic ridge is above sea-level, volcanic islands are formed, for example, subduction zones are places where two plates, usually an oceanic plate and a continental plate, collide. In this case, the plate subducts, or submerges under the continental plate forming a deep ocean trench just offshore. In a process called flux melting, water released from the subducting plate lowers the temperature of the overlying mantle wedge. This magma tends to be very viscous due to its high content, so it often does not reach the surface. When it does reach the surface, a volcano is formed, typical examples of this kind of volcano are Mount Etna and the volcanoes in the Pacific Ring of Fire. Because tectonic plates move across them, each volcano becomes dormant and is eventually re-formed as the plate advances over the postulated plume and this theory is currently under criticism, however. The most common perception of a volcano is of a mountain, spewing lava and poisonous gases from a crater at its summit, however. The features of volcanoes are more complicated and their structure. Some volcanoes have rugged peaks formed by lava domes rather than a summit crater while others have features such as massive plateaus
Volcano
–
Cleveland Volcano in the
Aleutian Islands of
Alaska photographed from the
International Space Station, May 2006
Volcano
–
Ash plumes reached a height of 19 kilometres (12 mi) during the climactic
explosive eruption at
Mount Pinatubo, Philippines in 1991.
Volcano
–
A 2007 eruptive column at
Mount Etna producing volcanic ash, pumice and lava bombs
Volcano
–
Ubinas Volcano
17.
Roald Amundsen
–
Roald Engelbregt Gravning Amundsen was a Norwegian explorer of polar regions. He led the Antarctic expedition of 1910–12 which was the first to reach the South Pole, in 1926, he was the first expedition leader for the air expedition to the North Pole. Amundsen is recognized as the first person, without dispute, as having reached both poles and he is also known as having the first expedition to traverse the Northwest Passage in the Arctic. In June 1928, while taking part in a mission for the airship Italia. Amundsen was a key leader during the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration, in the class of Douglas Mawson, Robert Falcon Scott. Amundsen was born to a family of Norwegian shipowners and captains in Borge and his parents were Jens Amundsen and Hanna Sahlqvist. Roald was the son in the family. His mother wanted him to avoid the family trade and encouraged him to become a doctor. He promptly quit university for a life at sea, Amundsen had hidden a lifelong desire inspired by Fridtjof Nansens crossing of Greenland in 1888 and Franklins lost expedition. He decided on a life of exploration of wilderness places. Amundsen joined the Belgian Antarctic Expedition as first mate and this expedition, led by Adrien de Gerlache using the ship the RV Belgica, became the first expedition to winter in Antarctica. The Belgica, whether by mistake or design, became locked in the sea ice at 70°30′S off Alexander Island, the crew endured a winter for which they were poorly prepared. By Amundsens own estimation, the doctor for the expedition, the American Frederick Cook, probably saved the crew from scurvy by hunting for animals and feeding the crew fresh meat. In cases where citrus fruits are lacking, fresh meat from animals that make their own vitamin C contains enough of the vitamin to prevent scurvy and this was an important lesson for Amundsens future expeditions. In 1903, Amundsen led the first expedition to successfully traverse Canadas Northwest Passage between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans and he planned a small expedition of six men in a 45-ton fishing vessel, Gjøa, in order to have flexibility. His ship had relatively shallow draft and his technique was to use a small ship and hug the coast. Amundsen had the ship outfitted with a gasoline engine. They traveled via Baffin Bay, the Parry Channel and then south through Peel Sound, James Ross Strait, Simpson Strait and they spent two winters at King William Island in the harbor of what is today Gjoa Haven, Nunavut, Canada
Roald Amundsen
–
Roald Amundsen
Roald Amundsen
–
Roald Amundsen as a young boy in
Christiania, 1875
Roald Amundsen
–
RV Belgica frozen in the ice, 1898
Roald Amundsen
–
Roald Amundsen, 1908
18.
Bay of Whales
–
The Bay of Whales was a natural ice harbor, or iceport, indenting the front of Ross Ice Shelf just north of Roosevelt Island, Antarctica. It is the southernmost point of open ocean not only of the Ross Sea, the Ross Sea extends much further south—as far as the Gould Coast, some 200 miles from the South Pole—but most of that area is covered by the Ross Ice Shelf rather than open sea. Ernest Shackleton named the feature on January 24,1908, during the Nimrod Expedition, during his quest for the South Pole, Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen established a temporary base, which he named Framheim, at the Bay of Whales. The base was used between January 1911 – February 1912, a survey by the second Byrd expedition in 1934 determined that the feature lay at the junction of two separate ice systems, the movements of which are influenced by the presence of Roosevelt Island. Commander Glen Jacobsen, USN, who visited aboard the USS Atka in January 1955, the Bay of Whales was entirely eliminated in 1987 when 96 miles long Iceberg B-9 broke off from the Ross Ice Shelf. Ice pier Atka Iceport Erskine Iceport Godel Iceport Norsel Iceport This article incorporates public domain material from the United States Geological Survey document Whales, Bay of
Bay of Whales
–
Icebreaker research vessel using the Bay of Whales ice harbor
Bay of Whales
19.
McMurdo Sound
–
McMurdo Sound and its ice-clogged waters extends about 55 kilometres long and wide. The sound connects the Ross Sea to the north with the Ross Ice Shelf cavity to the south via Haskell Strait, the strait is largely covered by the McMurdo Ice Shelf. The Royal Society Range rises from sea level to 4,205 metres on the western shoreline, Ross Island, an historic jumping-off point for polar explorers, designates the eastern boundary. The active volcano Mt Erebus at 3,794 metres dominates Ross Island, Antarcticas largest scientific base, the United States McMurdo Station, as well as the New Zealand Scott Base are on the southern shore of the island. Less than 10 percent of McMurdo Sounds shoreline is free of ice and it is the southernmost navigable body of water in the world. Captain James Clark Ross discovered this sound, which is about 1,300 kilometres from the South Pole, in February 1841, the sound today serves as a resupply route for cargo ships and for airplanes that land on the floating ice airstrips near the McMurdo Station. However, McMurdo Station’s continuous occupation by human beings since 1957/58 has dirtied the harbor of Winter Quarters Bay, the pack ice that girdles the shoreline at Winter Quarters Bay and elsewhere in the sound presents a formidable obstacle to surface ships. Vessels require ice-strengthened hulls and often have to rely upon escort by icebreakers, such extreme sea conditions have limited access by tourists, who otherwise are appearing in increasing numbers in the open waters of the Antarctic Peninsula. The few tourists who reach the McMurdo Sound find spectacular scenery with wildlife to be seen, including whales, seals, Adelie penguins. Cold circumpolar currents of the Southern Ocean reduce the flow of warm South Pacific or South Atlantic waters reaching McMurdo Sound, bitter katabatic winds spilling down from the Antarctic polar plateau into McMurdo Sound demonstrate Antarcticas status as the coldest and windiest continent in the world. The McMurdo Sound freezes over with sea ice about 3 metres thick during the winter, the Antarctic summer causes the pack ice to break up. Wind and currents may push the ice northward into the Ross Sea, temperatures during the dark winter months at McMurdo Station have dropped as low as −51 °C. However, December and January are the warmest months, with highs at −1 °C. McMurdo Sounds role as a strategic waterway dates back to early 20th century Antarctic exploration, British explorers Ernest Shackleton and Robert Scott built bases on the sounds shoreline as jumping-off points for their overland expeditions to the South Pole. McMurdo Sounds logistic importance continues today, aircraft transporting cargo and passengers land upon frozen runways at Williams Field on the McMurdo Ice Shelf. Moreover, the annual sealift of a ship and fuel tanker rely upon the sound as a supply route to the continents largest base. Both the U. S. base and New Zealands nearby Scott Base are on the tip of Ross Island. Ross Island is the southmost piece of land in Antarctica that is accessible by ship, in addition, the harbor at McMurdos Winter Quarters Bay is the worlds southmost seaport
McMurdo Sound
–
McMurdo Sound, Antarctica
McMurdo Sound
–
An iceberg that
calved off
Iceberg B-15 caused extensive pack ice buildup in McMurdo Sound, blocking shipping and preventing penguin access to open water.
McMurdo Sound
–
MV American Tern bringing supplies for McMurdo Station
McMurdo Sound
–
Weather instruments such as this device installed upon Iceberg B-15A provide scientists a better understanding of Antarctica's impact upon global climate. Photograph by: Josh Landis. National Science Foundation
20.
Geographic South Pole
–
The South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole or Terrestrial South Pole, is one of the two points where the Earths axis of rotation intersects its surface. It is the southernmost point on the surface of the Earth, situated on the continent of Antarctica, it is the site of the United States Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station, which was established in 1956 and has been permanently staffed since that year. The Geographic South Pole should not be confused with the South Magnetic Pole, the South Pole is at the center of the Southern Hemisphere. For most purposes, the Geographic South Pole is defined as the point of the two points where the Earths axis of rotation intersects its surface. However, the Earths axis of rotation is actually subject to very small wobbles, the geographic coordinates of the South Pole are usually given simply as 90°S, since its longitude is geometrically undefined and irrelevant. When a longitude is desired, it may be given as 0°, at the South Pole, all directions face north. For this reason, directions at the Pole are given relative to grid north, along tight latitude circles, clockwise is east, and counterclockwise is west, opposite to the North Pole. The Geographic South Pole is located on the continent of Antarctica. It sits atop a featureless, barren, windswept and icy plateau at an altitude of 2,835 metres above sea level, and is located about 1,300 km from the nearest open sea at Bay of Whales. The ice is estimated to be about 2,700 metres thick at the Pole, the polar ice sheet is moving at a rate of roughly 10 metres per year in a direction between 37° and 40° west of grid north, down towards the Weddell Sea. Therefore, the position of the station and other artificial features relative to the geographic pole gradually shift over time. The Geographic South Pole is marked by a stake in the ice alongside a small sign, these are repositioned each year in a ceremony on New Years Day to compensate for the movement of the ice. The sign records the respective dates that Roald Amundsen and Robert F. Scott reached the Pole, followed by a quotation from each man. A new marker stake is designed and fabricated each year by staff at the site, the Ceremonial South Pole is an area set aside for photo opportunities at the South Pole Station. It is located around 180 metres from the Geographic South Pole, Amundsens Tent, The tent was erected by the Norwegian expedition led by Roald Amundsen on its arrival on 14 December 1911. It is currently buried beneath the snow and ice in the vicinity of the Pole and it has been designated a Historic Site or Monument, following a proposal by Norway to the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting. In 1820, several expeditions claimed to have been the first to have sighted Antarctica, with the very first being the Russian expedition led by Faddey Bellingshausen and Mikhail Lazarev. The first landing was probably just over a year later when American Captain John Davis, the basic geography of the Antarctic coastline was not understood until the mid-to-late 19th century
Geographic South Pole
–
The Geographic South Pole. (The flag used on the flagpole is interchangeable.)
Geographic South Pole
–
1. South Geographic Pole 2.
South Magnetic Pole (2007) 3.
South Geomagnetic Pole (2005) 4.
South Pole of Inaccessibility
Geographic South Pole
–
The Ceremonial South Pole in 1998. (Background structures shown have since been replaced or altered.)
Geographic South Pole
–
Argentine soldiers saluting the flag after erecting the pole in 1965
21.
New Zealand
–
New Zealand /njuːˈziːlənd/ is an island nation in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. The country geographically comprises two main landmasses—the North Island, or Te Ika-a-Māui, and the South Island, or Te Waipounamu—and around 600 smaller islands. New Zealand is situated some 1,500 kilometres east of Australia across the Tasman Sea and roughly 1,000 kilometres south of the Pacific island areas of New Caledonia, Fiji, because of its remoteness, it was one of the last lands to be settled by humans. During its long period of isolation, New Zealand developed a distinct biodiversity of animal, fungal, the countrys varied topography and its sharp mountain peaks, such as the Southern Alps, owe much to the tectonic uplift of land and volcanic eruptions. New Zealands capital city is Wellington, while its most populous city is Auckland, sometime between 1250 and 1300 CE, Polynesians settled in the islands that later were named New Zealand and developed a distinctive Māori culture. In 1642, Dutch explorer Abel Tasman became the first European to sight New Zealand, in 1840, representatives of Britain and Māori chiefs signed the Treaty of Waitangi, which declared British sovereignty over the islands. In 1841, New Zealand became a colony within the British Empire, today, the majority of New Zealands population of 4.7 million is of European descent, the indigenous Māori are the largest minority, followed by Asians and Pacific Islanders. Reflecting this, New Zealands culture is derived from Māori and early British settlers. The official languages are English, Māori and New Zealand Sign Language, New Zealand is a developed country and ranks highly in international comparisons of national performance, such as health, education, economic freedom and quality of life. Since the 1980s, New Zealand has transformed from an agrarian, Queen Elizabeth II is the countrys head of state and is represented by a governor-general. In addition, New Zealand is organised into 11 regional councils and 67 territorial authorities for local government purposes, the Realm of New Zealand also includes Tokelau, the Cook Islands and Niue, and the Ross Dependency, which is New Zealands territorial claim in Antarctica. New Zealand is a member of the United Nations, Commonwealth of Nations, ANZUS, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Pacific Islands Forum, and Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation. Dutch explorer Abel Tasman sighted New Zealand in 1642 and called it Staten Landt, in 1645, Dutch cartographers renamed the land Nova Zeelandia after the Dutch province of Zeeland. British explorer James Cook subsequently anglicised the name to New Zealand, Aotearoa is the current Māori name for New Zealand. It is unknown whether Māori had a name for the country before the arrival of Europeans. Māori had several names for the two main islands, including Te Ika-a-Māui for the North Island and Te Waipounamu or Te Waka o Aoraki for the South Island. Early European maps labelled the islands North, Middle and South, in 1830, maps began to use North and South to distinguish the two largest islands and by 1907, this was the accepted norm. The New Zealand Geographic Board discovered in 2009 that the names of the North Island and South Island had never been formalised and this set the names as North Island or Te Ika-a-Māui, and South Island or Te Waipounamu
New Zealand
–
The Waitangi sheet from the
Treaty of Waitangi
New Zealand
–
Flag
New Zealand
–
Painting of
Mount Earnslaw by John Turnbull Thomson, oil on canvas, 1888
New Zealand
–
John Key,
Prime Minister of New Zealand since 2008
22.
Jurisdiction
–
Jurisdiction is the practical authority granted to a legal body to administer justice within a defined area of responsibility, e. g. Michigan tax law. In federations like the U. S. areas of jurisdiction apply to local, state, colloquially it is used to refer to the geographical area to which such authority applies, e. g. the court has jurisdiction over all of Colorado. The legal term refers only to the authority, not to a geographical area. International laws and treaties provide agreements which nations agree to be bound to, supranational organizations provide mechanisms whereby disputes between nations may be resolved through arbitration or mediation. When a country is recognized as de jure, it is an acknowledgment by the de jure nations that the country has sovereignty. However, it is often at the discretion of each nation whether to co-operate or participate, if a nation does agree to participate in activities of the supranational bodies and accept decisions, the nation is giving up its sovereign authority and thereby allocating power to these bodies. The fact that organizations, courts and tribunals have been created raises the difficult question of how to co-ordinate their activities with those of national courts. But, to invoke the jurisdiction in any case, all the parties have to accept the prospective judgment as binding. This reduces the risk of wasting the Courts time, each such group may form transnational institutions with declared legislative or judicial powers. For example, in Europe, the European Court of Justice has been given jurisdiction as the appellate court to the member states on issues of European law. This jurisdiction is entrenched and its authority could only be denied by a member if that member nation asserts its sovereignty. Hence, in the Netherlands, all treaties and the orders of international organizations are effective without any action being required to convert international into municipal law, in nations adopting this theory, the local courts automatically accept jurisdiction to adjudicate on lawsuits relying on international law principles. Otherwise the courts have a discretion to apply international law where it does not conflict with statute or the common law. According to the Supreme Court of the United States, the treaty power authorizes Congress to legislate under the Necessary and this concerns the relationships both between courts in different jurisdictions, and between courts within the same jurisdiction. The usual legal doctrine under which questions of jurisdiction are decided is termed forum non conveniens, to deal with the issue of forum shopping, nations are urged to adopt more positive rules on conflict of laws. In addition, the Lugano Convention binds the European Union and the European Free Trade Association, council Regulation 44/2001 now also applies as between the rest of the EU Member States and Denmark due to an agreement reached between the European Community and Denmark. In some legal areas, at least, the CACA enforcement of judgments is now more straightforward. At a national level, the rules still determine jurisdiction over persons who are not domiciled or habitually resident in the European Union or the Lugano area
Jurisdiction
–
United States Federal Civil Procedure doctrines
23.
Colossal squid
–
The colossal squid, sometimes called the Antarctic or giant cranch squid, is believed to be the largest squid species in terms of mass. It is the only member of the genus Mesonychoteuthis. Unlike the giant squid, whose arms and tentacles have only suckers lined with small teeth and its body is wider and stouter, and therefore heavier, than that of the giant squid. Colossal squid are believed to have longer mantles than the giant squid, the beak of M. hamiltoni is the largest known of any squid, and more robust than that of the giant squid. The colossal squid also has the largest eyes documented in the animal kingdom, the eye was estimated to be 30 to 40 cm when the squid was alive. The colossal squid is thought to have a metabolic rate. Estimates of its energy requirements suggest it is an ambush predator. Based on capture depths of a few specimens, and beaks found in sperm whale stomachs, the colossal squid ranges at least to a depth of 2.2 km. It is believed to be sexually dimorphic, with females generally being much larger than mature males. The squids method of reproduction has not been observed, although data on their reproduction can be inferred from anatomy. Since males lack an organ called a hectocotylus, they use a penis instead. Many sperm whales have scars on their backs, believed to be caused by the hooks of colossal squid, many other animals also feed on colossal squid, including beaked whales, pilot whales, southern elephant seals, Patagonian toothfish, sleeper sharks, and albatrosses. However, beaks from mature adults have only recovered from large predators. The species was first discovered in the form of two found in the stomach of a sperm whale in 1925. In 1981 a Russian trawler in the Ross Sea, off the coast of Antarctica, caught a large squid with a length of 4 m. In 2003 a complete specimen of a female was found near the surface with a total length of 6 m. This specimen shows that colossal squids may grow larger than 500 kg, in 2005 a specimen was captured at a depth of 1,625 m while taking a toothfish from a longline off South Georgia Island. Although the mantle was not brought aboard, the length was estimated at over 2.5 m
Colossal squid
–
Colossal squid
Colossal squid
–
This specimen, caught in early 2007, is the largest cephalopod ever recorded. Here it is shown in its live state during capture, with the delicate red skin still intact and the
mantle characteristically inflated.
Colossal squid
–
The specimen on display at the
Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
24.
Calcium carbonate
–
Calcium carbonate is a chemical compound with the formula CaCO3. It is a substance found in rocks as the minerals calcite and aragonite and is the main component of pearls and the shells of marine organisms, snails. Calcium carbonate is the ingredient in agricultural lime and is created when calcium ions in hard water react with carbonate ions to create limescale. It is medicinally used as a supplement or as an antacid. Calcium carbonate shares the properties of other carbonates. CaCO3 + CO2 + H2O → Ca2 This reaction is important in the erosion of rock, forming caverns. An unusual form of calcium carbonate is the hexahydrate, ikaite, ikaite is stable only below 6 °C. The vast majority of calcium used in industry is extracted by mining or quarrying. Pure calcium carbonate, can be produced from a quarried source. Alternatively, calcium carbonate is prepared from calcium oxide, other forms can be prepared, the denser, orthorhombic λ-CaCO3 and μ-CaCO3, occurring as the mineral vaterite. The aragonite form can be prepared by precipitation at temperatures above 85 °C, calcite contains calcium atoms coordinated by 6 oxygen atoms, in aragonite they are coordinated by 9 oxygen atoms. The vaterite structure is not fully understood, magnesium carbonate MgCO3 has the calcite structure, whereas strontium and barium carbonate adopt the aragonite structure, reflecting their larger ionic radii. Calcite, aragonite and vaterite are pure calcium carbonate minerals, industrially important source rocks which are predominantly calcium carbonate include limestone, chalk, marble and travertine. Eggshells, snail shells and most seashells are predominantly calcium carbonate, oyster shells have enjoyed recent recognition as a source of dietary calcium, but are also a practical industrial source. While not practical as a source, dark green vegetables such as broccoli. Beyond Earth, strong evidence suggests the presence of Calcium carbonate on Mars, signs of Calcium Carbonate have been detected at more than one location. This provides some evidence for the past presence of liquid water, Carbonate is found frequently in geologic settings and constitute an enormous carbon reservoir. Calcium carbonate occurs as aragonite, calcite and dolomite, the carbonate minerals form the rock types, limestone, chalk, marble, travertine, tufa, and others
Calcium carbonate
–
Calcium carbonate
Calcium carbonate
–
500-milligram calcium supplements made from calcium carbonate
Calcium carbonate
–
Travertine calcium carbonate deposits from a
hot spring
25.
Limestone
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Limestone is a sedimentary rock, composed mainly of skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral, forams and molluscs. Its major materials are the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate, about 10% of sedimentary rocks are limestones. The solubility of limestone in water and weak acid solutions leads to karst landscapes, most cave systems are through limestone bedrock. The first geologist to distinguish limestone from dolomite was Belsazar Hacquet in 1778, like most other sedimentary rocks, most limestone is composed of grains. Most grains in limestone are skeletal fragments of organisms such as coral or foraminifera. Other carbonate grains comprising limestones are ooids, peloids, intraclasts and these organisms secrete shells made of aragonite or calcite, and leave these shells behind when they die. Limestone often contains variable amounts of silica in the form of chert or siliceous skeletal fragment, some limestones do not consist of grains at all, and are formed completely by the chemical precipitation of calcite or aragonite, i. e. travertine. Secondary calcite may be deposited by supersaturated meteoric waters and this produces speleothems, such as stalagmites and stalactites. Another form taken by calcite is oolitic limestone, which can be recognized by its granular appearance, the primary source of the calcite in limestone is most commonly marine organisms. Some of these organisms can construct mounds of rock known as reefs, below about 3,000 meters, water pressure and temperature conditions cause the dissolution of calcite to increase nonlinearly, so limestone typically does not form in deeper waters. Limestones may also form in lacustrine and evaporite depositional environments, calcite can be dissolved or precipitated by groundwater, depending on several factors, including the water temperature, pH, and dissolved ion concentrations. Calcite exhibits a characteristic called retrograde solubility, in which it becomes less soluble in water as the temperature increases. Impurities will cause limestones to exhibit different colors, especially with weathered surfaces, Limestone may be crystalline, clastic, granular, or massive, depending on the method of formation. Crystals of calcite, quartz, dolomite or barite may line small cavities in the rock, when conditions are right for precipitation, calcite forms mineral coatings that cement the existing rock grains together, or it can fill fractures. Travertine is a banded, compact variety of limestone formed along streams, particularly there are waterfalls. Calcium carbonate is deposited where evaporation of the leaves a solution supersaturated with the chemical constituents of calcite. Tufa, a porous or cellular variety of travertine, is found near waterfalls, coquina is a poorly consolidated limestone composed of pieces of coral or shells. During regional metamorphism that occurs during the building process, limestone recrystallizes into marble
Limestone
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Limestone outcrop in the
Torcal de Antequera nature reserve of
Málaga, Spain
Limestone
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Limestone quarry at
Cedar Creek, Virginia, USA
Limestone
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Cutting the limestone blocks at a quarry in
Gozo,
Malta
Limestone
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Limestone as building material
26.
Argillites
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Argillite may also refer to Argillite, Kentucky. An argillite is a sedimentary rock composed predominantly of indurated clay particles. Argillaceous rocks are basically lithified muds and oozes and they contain variable amounts of silt-sized particles. The argillites grade into shale when the fissile layering typical of shale is developed, another name for poorly lithified argillites is mudstone. These rocks, although variable in composition, are high in aluminium and silica with variable alkali. The term pelitic or pelite is often applied to these sediments, metamorphism of argillites produces slate, phyllite, and pelitic schist. The Belt Supergroup, an assemblage of rocks of late Precambrian age, includes thick sequences of argillite and it is exposed primarily in western Montana, including the Bitterroot Valley and Bitterroot Mountains, the Missoula area, Flathead Lake, and Glacier National Park, and in northern Idaho. There are also minor occurrences in northwestern Washington and western Wyoming, the Haida carvings of along the coast of British Columbia are notable aboriginal art treasures created from a type of a hard, fine black silt argillite, sometimes called black slate. The black slate occurs only at a quarry on a Slatechuck Mountain in the basin of Slatechuck Creek. At one time, around 1900, it was shipped to Victoria for manufacturing and this artwork has been of high quality and prized around the world since the Haida first began carving it to sell to sailors around 1800, modern Haida carvers continue the tradition. Mudrock Catlinite Lutite R. V. Dietrich,2005, Gemrocks, museum of Civilization Haida argillite gallery BC Govt MINFILE report, includes history and geological data. Dauzères, Alexandre,2004, Ten Years of Argillite Study, Procedia Earth and Planetary Science USGS argillite
Argillites
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Grey chunks of
graptolitic argillite below the cliffs of
Pakri Islands, yellowish and white chunks are limestone
Argillites
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A piece of raw black argillite from
Haida Gwaii.
27.
Siltstones
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Siltstone is a sedimentary rock which has a grain size in the silt range, finer than sandstone and coarser than claystones. Siltstone is a sedimentary rock. As its name implies, it is composed of silt sized particles. Siltstones differ significantly from sandstones due to their smaller pores and higher propensity for containing a significant clay fraction, although often mistaken as a shale, siltstone lacks the fissility and laminations which are typical of shale. Unless the siltstone is fairly shaly, stratification is likely to be obscure, mudstone or shale are rocks that contain mud, which is material that has a range of silt and clay. Siltstone is differentiated by having a majority silt, not clay, folk, R. L.1965, Petrology of sedimentary rocks PDF version. 2nd ed.1981, ISBN 0-914696-14-9 Williams, Howel, Francis J. Turner and Charles M. Gilbert,1954, Petrography, W. H. Freeman
Siltstones
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Siltstone
Siltstones
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Holtzclaw siltstone, Louisville, Kentucky
28.
Sandstones
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Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earths crust, like sand, sandstone may be any color, but the most common colors are tan, brown, yellow, red, grey, pink, white, and black. Since sandstone beds often form highly visible cliffs and other topographic features, quartz-bearing sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure, usually related to tectonic compression within orogenic belts. They are formed from cemented grains that may either be fragments of a rock or be mono-minerallic crystals. The cements binding these grains together are typically calcite, clays, grain sizes in sands are defined within the range of 0.0625 mm to 2 mm. The formation of sandstone involves two principal stages, first, a layer or layers of sand accumulates as the result of sedimentation, either from water or from air. Typically, sedimentation occurs by the settling out from suspension. The most common cementing materials are silica and calcium carbonate, which are derived either from dissolution or from alteration of the sand after it was buried. Colours will usually be tan or yellow, a predominant additional colourant in the southwestern United States is iron oxide, which imparts reddish tints ranging from pink to dark red, with additional manganese imparting a purplish hue. Red sandstones are seen in the Southwest and West of Britain, as well as central Europe. The regularity of the latter favours use as a source for masonry, either as a building material or as a facing stone. These physical properties allow the grains to survive multiple recycling events. Quartz grains evolve from rock, which are felsic in origin. Feldspathic framework grains are commonly the second most abundant mineral in sandstones, Feldspar can be divided into two smaller subdivisions, alkali feldspars and plagioclase feldspars. The different types of feldspar can be distinguished under a petrographic microscope, below is a description of the different types of feldspar. Alkali feldspar is a group of minerals in which the composition of the mineral can range from KAlSi3O8 to NaAlSi3O8. Plagioclase feldspar is a group of solid solution minerals that range in composition from NaAlSi3O8 to CaAl2Si2O8. Lithic framework grains are pieces of ancient source rock that have yet to weather away to individual mineral grains, accessory minerals are all other mineral grains in a sandstone, commonly these minerals make up just a small percentage of the grains in a sandstone
Sandstones
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Cut slab of sandstone showing
Liesegang banding
Sandstones
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Devonian Sandstone at Suur Taevaskoda,
Põlva County,
Estonia
Sandstones
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Alcove in the
Navajo Sandstone
Sandstones
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Sandstone Rock-cut tombs (
Kokhim) in
Petra,
Jordan
Media related to Ross Sea at Wikimedia Commons
