Foundation Ice Stream is a major ice stream

Ice stream

An ice stream is a region of an ice sheet that moves significantly faster than the surrounding ice. Ice streams are a type of glacier. They are significant features of the Antarctic where they account for 10% of the volume of the ice...

 in Antarctica's Pensacola Mountains

Pensacola Mountains

The Pensacola Mountains are a large group of mountain ranges and peaks in Antarctica, extending 450 km in a NE-SW direction, comprising the Argentina Range, Forrestal Range, Dufek Massif, Cordiner Peaks, Neptune Range, Patuxent Range, Rambo Nunataks and Pecora Escarpment...

. The ice stream drains northward for 150 miles along the west side of the Patuxent Range

Patuxent Range

The Patuxent Range is a major range of the Pensacola Mountains, comprising the Thomas Hills, Anderson Hills, Mackin Table and various nunataks and ridges bounded by the Foundation Ice Stream, Academy Glacier and the Patuxent Ice Stream. Discovered and partially photographed on January 13, 1956 in...

 and the Neptune Range

Neptune Range

The Neptune Range is a mountain range, long, lying WSW of Forrestal Range in the central part of the Pensacola Mountains in Antarctica. The range is composed of Washington Escarpment with its associated ridges, valleys and peaks, the Iroquois Plateau, and the Schmidt and Williams Hills...

 to enter Ronne Ice Shelf westward of Dufek Massif

Dufek Massif

Dufek Massif is a range of peaks in the Pensacola Mountains of Antarctica, centered at . It covers and its highest point is England Peak . It is named for Rear Admiral George J. Dufek who participated in the exploration of the Antarctic in the mid-twentieth century. Dufek Coast, Dufek Head, and...

. The United States Geological Survey

United States Geological Survey

The United States Geological Survey is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and the natural hazards that threaten it. The organization has four major science disciplines, concerning biology,...

 (USGS) mapped the stream from surveys and USN air photos, 1956-66. The Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names

Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names

The Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names is an advisory committee of the United States Board on Geographic Names responsible for recommending names for features in Antarctica...

 (US-ACAN) named the stream in recognition of the National Science Foundation

National Science Foundation

The National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health...

, which provided major support of the U.S. Antarctic Research Program during this period.