GEOGRAPHIC NAMES OF ANTARCTICA 



work started in December. They failed to locate 

 the depot left on January 3 and had to return to 

 base a few days later. Meanwhile, Carse spent a 

 week aboard a sealer off the south coast making 

 compass controlled sketches of the bays, until 

 exceptionally bad weather brought the sealing 

 season to a sudden close. The party left South 

 Georgia for the United Kingdom in the Southern 

 Opal on April 18, 1952. 



1953-54. South Georgia Survey. 

 Leader: Verner D. Carse. Ships: Various whaling 

 vessels. 



Summary: A private British expedition consisting 

 of Verner D. Carse, G. Smillie, A. Trendall and K. 

 Warburton left Glasgow in the whaling tanker 

 Polar Maid on August 29, 1953, arriving at Leith 

 Harbor in South Georgia on October 10. As in 

 1951, a base was set up in the jail at Grytviken. In 

 mid-October Carse made a brief preliminary recon- 

 naissance around the northwestern end of the is- 

 land in the sealer Albatros, while Smillie and Tren- 

 dall did geological work in the Dartmouth Point 

 area of Cumberland East Bay. The first main 

 journey began on October 29 without Warburton, 

 who was ill at Grytviken, when Carse, Smillie and 

 Trendall were landed at Sunset Fjord in the Bay 

 of Isles. Next day they started up Brunonia 

 Glacier with two sledges. On November 5 they 

 reached its head and began the descent toward the 

 head of Ice Fjord. From this point on there was 

 little snow cover and they had to backpack all their 

 equipment. Turning northward, they travelled 

 along the rugged north coast of the island, reach- 

 ing the head of Right Whale Bay on November 14. 

 After ten days of survey and geological work in this 

 vicinity, the party returned to Brunonia Glacier. 

 From there they hoped to link their survey with 

 the 1951-52 survey to the east, but between De- 

 cember 3 and 16 continued bad weather prevented 

 this, and they were forced to withdraw to Ample 

 Bay in the Bay of Isles. The party returned to 

 Grytviken by sea on December 19. Later that 

 month Smillie and Trendall visited the east side of 

 Cumberland East Bay for four days' survey and 

 geological work. Shortly after their return to base 

 Warburton had to be invalided home. The second 

 main journey began on January 11, 1954 when the 

 party landed about two miles west of Cape Vahsel 

 near the southeast extremity of the island. By 

 January 25 the party had travelled southwest to 

 the vicinity close northeast of Drygalski Fjord. 

 There ten days were spent studying the geology 

 and making a local survey. On February 6 and 7 

 they travelled westward, intending to circle around 

 the head of Drygalski Fjord and extend the survey 

 toward Novosilski Bay. They were stopped short 

 by ridges which extend from Salvesen Range down 

 to the northern shore of Drygalski Fjord. Forced 



to turn eastward again, they reached the coast at 

 Cooper Bay on February 16. The following day 

 they signalled a passing catcher and on the 18th 

 arrived back at Grytviken. Smillie returned home, 

 but Carse and Trendall remained in South Georgia 

 for two months, continuing the survey and geologi- 

 cal work. Favorable weather on March 9, 10 and 

 11 allowed them to land from a sealer on Annenkov 

 Island.. Between March 23 and April 4 they com- 

 pleted the survey of the Cape Charlotte peninsula 

 on the southeast side of Royal Bay. They sailed 

 for home in the whaling tanker Southern Opal on 

 April 17, 1954. Lack of snow, poor weather and 

 the illness of one member of the party resulted in 

 curtailment nf the original plans, necessitating 

 further work to complete the survey of the island. 



1954-55. Argentine expedition. 

 Leader: Capt. Luis R. A. Capurro. Ship: General 

 San Martin. 



Summary : The ship sailed south in late December 

 from Scotia Bay in the South Orkney Islands and 

 entered the eastern part of Weddell Sea, taking 

 advantage of ice conditions in that portion of the 

 sea. The frontal ice cliffs were quickly surveyed 

 and photographed from the ship and by helicopters 

 in the area between 33°E. and 45°E. A scientific 

 base was established in early January near the 

 head of Filchner Ice Shelf in about 78°00'S., 

 38°33'W. Stancomb - Wills Ice Tongue was found 

 to be non-existent, and no major glaciers were 

 found by the expedition. A large open channel 

 was found to parallel the ice front. Following 

 completion of oceanographic, meteorologic and 

 astronomic observations, the ship retired north- 

 ward to the South Sandwich Islands. 



1954-55. United States Government expedition. 

 Leader: Cdr. Glen Jacobsen. Ship: Atka. 

 Summary: Sponsored by the United States Navy 

 and other government agencies. The ship sailed 

 south from the vicinity of Scott Island in early 

 January 1955 with a primary purpose of examining 

 a site for the main United States base to be estab- 

 lished as part of the International Geophysical 

 Year operations of 1957-58. A large section of the 

 Ross Ice Shelf forming the west side of the Bay of 

 Whales was noted as having cracked away and 

 drifted out to sea, rendering the former natural 

 harbor of little use at this time. Little America 

 IV, the site of United States Navy Operation High- 

 jump, 1946-47, was also found to have been broken 

 away. Failing in attempts to enter the ice-filled 

 Sulzberger Bay, the Atka returned to survey the 

 Kainan Bay area. Coastal reconnaissance was 

 also made along the Princess Martha Coast in the 

 region between 0°30'W. and 20 °W., resulting in the 

 delineation of several bays and ice tongues asso- 

 ciated with the coastal ice cliffs in this area. 



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