Scott Glacier (Transantarctic Mountains)
Encyclopedia
The Scott Glacier is a major glacier
, 120 miles (190 km) long, that drains the East Antarctic Ice Sheet
through the Queen Maud Mountains
to the Ross Ice Shelf
. The Scott Glacier is one of a series of major glaciers flowing across the Transantarctic Mountains
, with the Amundsen Glacier
to the west and the Leverett
and Reedy
glaciers to the east.
and Mount Howe
, and descends between the Nilsen Plateau
and the mountains of the Watson Escarpment
to enter Ross Ice Shelf
just west of the Tapley Mountains
.
The Tapley Mountains
, Watson Escarpment
, Mount Blackburn
, and the La Gorce Mountains
bound the Scott Glacier on its eastern margin, while the Karo Hills
, Hays Mountains
, Faulkner Escarpment
, and Rawson Mountains
define the western edge of the Scott's drainage.
(US-ACAN) after early Antarctic explorer Robert Falcon Scott
, who never saw the Scott Glacier but rather ascended the Beardmore Glacier
to the west en route to the South Pole
in 1911-12.
Glacier
A glacier is a large persistent body of ice that forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. At least 0.1 km² in area and 50 m thick, but often much larger, a glacier slowly deforms and flows due to stresses induced by its weight...
, 120 miles (190 km) long, that drains the East Antarctic Ice Sheet
East Antarctic Ice Sheet
The East Antarctic Ice Sheet is one of two large ice sheets in Antarctica, and the largest on the entire planet. The EAIS lies between 45° West and 168° East longitudinally....
through the Queen Maud Mountains
Queen Maud Mountains
The Queen Maud Mountains are a major group of mountains, ranges and subordinate features of the Transantarctic Mountains, lying between the Beardmore and Reedy Glaciers and including the area from the head of the Ross Ice Shelf to the polar plateau in Antarctica...
to the Ross Ice Shelf
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 km long, and between 15 and 50 metres high above the water surface...
. The Scott Glacier is one of a series of major glaciers flowing across the Transantarctic Mountains
Transantarctic Mountains
The three largest mountain ranges on the Antarctic continent are the Transantarctic Mountains , the West Antarctica Ranges, and the East Antarctica Ranges. The Transantarctic Mountains compose a mountain range in Antarctica which extend, with some interruptions, across the continent from Cape Adare...
, with the Amundsen Glacier
Amundsen Glacier
Amundsen Glacier is a major Antarctic glacier, about 6 to 10 km wide and 128 km long, originating on the polar plateau where it drains the area to the south and west of Nilsen Plateau, and descending through the Queen Maud Mountains to enter the Ross Ice Shelf just west of the...
to the west and the Leverett
Leverett Glacier
Leverett Glacier in Antarctica is about 80 km long and 4 to 6 km wide, draining northward from the Watson Escarpment, between the California and Stanford Plateaus, and then trending WNW between the Tapley Mountains and Harold Byrd Mountains to terminate at the head of the Ross Ice Shelf...
and Reedy
Reedy Glacier
The Reedy Glacier is a major glacier in Antarctica, over 160 km long and from 10 to 19 km wide, descending from the polar plateau to the Ross Ice Shelf between the Michigan Plateau and Wisconsin Range, and marking the limits of the Queen Maud Mountains on the west and the Horlick...
glaciers to the east.
Geography
The Scott originates on the Polar Plateau in the vicinity of D'Angelo BluffD'Angelo Bluff
D'Angelo Bluff is a prominent north-facing rock bluff, 6 nautical miles long, trending westward from Mount Mclntyre. The bluff stands at the west side of Scott Glacier, near the head, 13 nautical miles south of Mount Early, and west of Mt. Howe. Discovered by the Byrd Antarctic Expedition...
and Mount Howe
Mount Howe
Mount Howe is an elongated mountain comprising low connecting ridges and gable-shaped nunataks. It rises at the east side of Scott Glacier, near the head, directly opposite Mount McIntyre. This mountain, including its small southern outlier, apparently is the southernmost mountain in the world...
, and descends between the Nilsen Plateau
Nilsen Plateau
Nilsen Plateau is a rugged, ice-covered plateau which, including Fram Mesa, is about 30 nautical miles long and 1 to 12 nautical miles wide, rising to 3,940 m between the upper reaches of the Amundsen and Scott Glaciers, in the Queen Maud Mountains...
and the mountains of the Watson Escarpment
Watson Escarpment
Watson Escarpment is a major escarpment in the Queen Maud Mountains, trending northward along the east margin of Scott Glacier, then eastward to Reedy Glacier where it turns southward along the glacier's west side. Somewhat arcuate, the escarpment is nearly 100 nautical miles long, rises...
to enter Ross Ice Shelf
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 km long, and between 15 and 50 metres high above the water surface...
just west of the Tapley Mountains
Tapley Mountains
The Tapley Mountains is a mountain range fronting on the eastern side of the Scott Glacier, extending eastward for between Leverett and Albanus glaciers in the Queen Maud Mountains, a part of the larger Transantarctic Mountains....
.
The Tapley Mountains
Tapley Mountains
The Tapley Mountains is a mountain range fronting on the eastern side of the Scott Glacier, extending eastward for between Leverett and Albanus glaciers in the Queen Maud Mountains, a part of the larger Transantarctic Mountains....
, Watson Escarpment
Watson Escarpment
Watson Escarpment is a major escarpment in the Queen Maud Mountains, trending northward along the east margin of Scott Glacier, then eastward to Reedy Glacier where it turns southward along the glacier's west side. Somewhat arcuate, the escarpment is nearly 100 nautical miles long, rises...
, Mount Blackburn
Mount Blackburn (Antarctica)
Mount Blackburn is a massive, flat-topped mountain, high, standing just east of the Scott Glacier where it surmounts the southwest end of California Plateau and the Watson Escarpment, in the Queen Maud Mountains.It was discovered by and named for Quin A...
, and the La Gorce Mountains
La Gorce Mountains
La Gorce Mountains is a group of mountains, 20 nautical miles long, standing between the tributary Robison and Klein Glaciers at the east side of the upper reaches of the Scott Glacier, in the Queen Maud Mountains...
bound the Scott Glacier on its eastern margin, while the Karo Hills
Karo Hills
Karo Hills are rounded, ice-free foothills extending for 12 nautical miles along the west side of the terminus of Scott Glacier, from Mount Salisbury north-northwest to the edge of the Ross Ice Shelf. First seen and roughly mapped by the Byrd Antarctic Expedition, 1928-30. Named by Advisory...
, Hays Mountains
Hays Mountains
Hays Mountains is a large group of mountains of the Queen Maud Mountains, surmounting the divide between the lower portions of Amundsen and Scott Glaciers and extending from the vicinity of Mount Thorne on the northwest to Mount Dietz on the southeast. Discovered by R...
, Faulkner Escarpment
Faulkner Escarpment
Faulkner Escarpment is an ice-covered escarpment, 30 nautical miles long and over 3,000 m high, trending in a north-south direction and forming the east edge of Nilsen Plateau and Fram Mesa in the Queen Maud Mountains. Discovered in December 1934 by the Byrd Antarctic Expedition geological party...
, and Rawson Mountains
Rawson Mountains (Antarctica)
The Rawson Mountains lie within the Queen Maud Mountains to the southeast of the Ross Ice Shelf. They stand between the head of the Amundsen and Scott Glaciers. Peaks within the range include Mount Wyatt and Mount Weaver ....
define the western edge of the Scott's drainage.
History
Scott Glacier was discovered in December 1929 by the Byrd Antarctic Expedition geological party under Laurence Gould. The Scott Glacier was named by Advisory Committee on Antarctic NamesAdvisory 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) after early Antarctic explorer Robert Falcon Scott
Robert Falcon Scott
Captain Robert Falcon Scott, CVO was a Royal Navy officer and explorer who led two expeditions to the Antarctic regions: the Discovery Expedition, 1901–04, and the ill-fated Terra Nova Expedition, 1910–13...
, who never saw the Scott Glacier but rather ascended the Beardmore Glacier
Beardmore Glacier
The Beardmore Glacier in Antarctica is one of the largest glaciers in the world, with a length exceeding 160 km . The glacier is one of the main passages from the Ross Ice Shelf through the Queen Alexandra and Commonwealth ranges of the Transantarctic Mountains to the Antarctic Plateau, and was one...
to the west en route to the South Pole
South Pole
The South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole or Terrestrial South Pole, is one of the two points where the Earth's axis of rotation intersects its surface. It is the southernmost point on the surface of the Earth and lies on the opposite side of the Earth from the North Pole...
in 1911-12.