Bransfield Island is an island nearly 5 miles (8 km), lying 3 miles (5 km) southwest of D'Urville Island

D'Urville Island, Antarctica

D'Urville Island is an island of Antarctica. It is the northernmost island of the Joinville Island group, long, lying immediately north of Joinville Island, from which it is separated by Larsen Channel...

 off the northeast end of the Antarctic Peninsula

Antarctic Peninsula

The Antarctic Peninsula is the northernmost part of the mainland of Antarctica. It extends from a line between Cape Adams and a point on the mainland south of Eklund Islands....

. The name Point Bransfield, after Edward Bransfield

Edward Bransfield

Edward Bransfield was a master of the British Royal Navy and considered the discoverer of the continent of Antarctica.-Early life:...

, Master, 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...

, was given in 1842 by a British expedition under James Clark Ross

James Clark Ross

Sir James Clark Ross , was a British naval officer and explorer. He explored the Arctic with his uncle Sir John Ross and Sir William Parry, and later led his own expedition to Antarctica.-Arctic explorer:...

 to the low western termination of what is now the Joinville Island group

Joinville Island group

Joinville Island group is a group of antarctic islands, lying off the northeastern tip of the Antarctic Peninsula, from which Joinville Island group is separated by the Antarctic Sound. Joinville Island, being located at , is the largest island of the Joinville Island group...

. A 1947 survey by the Falklands Islands Dependencies Survey determined that this western termination is a separate island.

This is one of several Antarctic islands around the peninsula known as Graham Land

Graham Land

Graham Land is that portion of the Antarctic Peninsula which lies north of a line joining Cape Jeremy and Cape Agassiz. This description of Graham Land is consistent with the 1964 agreement between the British Antarctic Place-names Committee and the US Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names, in...

, which is closer to South America

South America

South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...

than any other part of that continent.