Wilczek Land

Wilczek Land (Russian: Земля Вильчека; Zemlya Vil'cheka, German: Wilczek-Land), is an island in the Arctic Ocean at 80.58°N 60.5°E / 80.58; 60.5. It is the second-largest island in Franz Josef Land, in Arctic Russia.

Wilczek Land
Native name:
Земля Вильчека
Location of Wilczek Land in Franz Josef Land
Wilczek Land
Wilczek Land (Russia)
Geography
LocationArctic Ocean
Coordinates80.58°N 60.5°E / 80.58; 60.5
ArchipelagoFranz Josef Land
Area2,203 km2 (851 sq mi)
Highest elevation606 m (1,988 ft)
Highest pointWüllerstorf Mountains
Administration
OblastArkhangelsk Oblast

History

The second largest island (after Zemlya Georga) in the Franz Josef Land archipelago is named after Austro-Hungarian Count Johann Nepomuk Wilczek.[1] Count Hans Wilczek was the most important sponsor of the Austro-Hungarian North Pole Expedition to Franz Josef Land, although he himself never visited the archipelago.

Cape Heller (Mys Geller) (80°46′N 59°36′E) was the wintering site for two Norwegians, Paul Bjørvig and Bernt Bentsen, members of the 1898-9 Wellmann Expedition, while their team led by Walter Wellmann stayed in the main camp at Cape Tegethoff on Hall Island to the south. Bentsen died during the winter, and Bjørvig kept the dead body of his friend in their joint sleeping bag for 55 days, until the rest of the team came to his rescue.

This island should not be confused with the small Wilczek Island, "Остров Вильчека", located south-west of Salm Island, also in the Franz Josef group and named after the same person.

Geography

Wilczek Land is the second largest island of the Franz Josef Archipelago, at 2203 km². It is almost completely glacierized except for two narrow areas along its western shores. The highest point on the island is 606 metres (1,988 feet).

Cape Ganza (Mys Ganza) is Wilczek Land's westernmost cape. The channel to the west, between Wilczek Land and Gallya, is known as Avstriyskyy Proliv (Австрийский пролив).[2]

Glaciers and ice domes

The Kupol Arktirazvedki (Купол Арктиразведки) ice dome covers the northeastern part of the island.[3] On the western side of the Arktirazvedki ice dome there are two glaciers, the Stremitelny Glacier (Lednik Stremitel’nyy) "Rushing Glacier", and the Molochny Glacier (Lednik Molochnyy) "Milky Glacier" to its west, both having their terminus on the northern shore.[4]

Further to the south the Kupol Tindalya (Купол Тиндаля) ice dome, named after Irish glaciologist John Tyndall, covers the eastern central area of the island.[5] To the southwest of it flows the Znamenity Glacier (Lednik Znamenityy), which has its terminus on the southern coast, east of the "Cloudy Dome" Kupol Oblachnyy (Купол Облачный) ice dome at the southern end of the island.[6]

Adjacent minor islands
  • Off Wilczek Land's southern bay lies a small island called Klagenfurt Island (Остров Клагенфурт) about 9 kilometres (6 miles) from the shore. This island is named after Klagenfurt, the capital of Carinthia.
  • Immediately off Wilczek Land's eastern coast lie two small islets called Ostrova Gorbunova (Острова Горбунова); they are at (80°34′N 62°01′E). These islets were named after Russian naturalist Gregory Petrovich Gorbunov.[7]
  • 1.5 km off Wilczek Land's southeastern cape lie four islets in a row named (from NE to SW):
    • Ostrov Derevyannyy (Остров Деревянный).
    • Ostrov Daues (Остров Дауэс) or Davis Island, named after Antarctic navigator John King Davis.
    • Ostrov Mak-Nul'ta (Остров Мак-Нульта).
    • Ostrov Tillo (Остров Тилло), named after Ukrainian cartographer Oleksiy Tillo. This island should not be confused with Tillo Island in the Kara Sea.

See also

Bibliography
  • Clements R. Markham, The Lands of Silence

References
  1. John Nepomuk Graf Wilchek
  2. "Zemlya Vil'cheka". Mapcarta. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  3. "Kupol Arktirazvedki". Mapcarta. Retrieved 7 October 2016.
  4. "Lednik Stremitel'nyy". Mapcarta. Retrieved 7 October 2016.
  5. "Kupol Tindalya". Mapcarta. Retrieved 7 October 2016.
  6. "Kupol Oblachnyy". Mapcarta. Retrieved 7 October 2016.
  7. Gregory Petrovich Gorbunov
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