James Ross Island
James Ross Island is a large island off the southeast side and near the northeastern extremity of the Antarctic Peninsula, from which it is separated by Prince Gustav Channel. Rising to 1,630 metres (5,350 ft), it is irregularly shaped and extends 64 km (40 miles) in a north–south direction. It was charted in October 1903 by the Swedish Antarctic Expedition under Otto Nordenskiöld, who named it for Sir James Clark Ross, the leader of a British expedition to this area in 1842 that discovered and roughly charted a number of points along the eastern side of the island. The style, "James" Ross Island is used to avoid confusion with the more widely known Ross Island in McMurdo Sound.
Map of Graham Land, showing James Ross Island (2) | |
James Ross James Ross Island (Antarctic Peninsula) | |
| Geography | |
|---|---|
| Location | Antarctica |
| Coordinates | 64°10′S 57°45′W |
| Archipelago | James Ross Island group |
| Area | 2,598 km2 (1,003 sq mi) |
| Length | 64 km (39.8 mi) |
| Highest elevation | 1,630 m (5350 ft) |
| Highest point | Mount Haddington |
| Administration | |
| Administered under the Antarctic Treaty System | |
It is one of several islands around the peninsula known as Graham Land, which is closer to South America than any other part of that continent.
The island was connected to the Antarctic mainland by an ice shelf until 1995, when the ice shelf collapsed, making the Prince Gustav Channel passable for the first time.
Mendel Polar Station, the first Czech Antarctic Base, is located on the island.