South Orkney Islands 651666 224931731 2008-07-11T01:45:06Z John Carter 3358555 /* External links */ removed redundant category [[Image:South Orkney Islands-en.svg|thumb|350px]] The '''South Orkney Islands''' are a group of [[List of antarctic and sub-antarctic islands|islands]] in the [[Southern Ocean]]. The islands have been administered as part of [[British Antarctic Territory]] since 1962 and prior to this as a [[Falkland Islands|Falkland Islands Dependency]]. Under the [[Antarctic Treaty]] 1959, the Islands' sovereignty is neither recognized nor disputed by the signatories and they are free for use by any signatory for non-military use. The islands are claimed by [[Argentina]] which has maintained a permanent base there since 1904. ==History== The South Orkney Islands were discovered in 1821 by two [[Seal hunter|sealer]]s, [[Nathaniel Brown Palmer]] and George Powell. The Islands were originally named ''Powell's Group'', with the main island named Coronation island as it was the year of the [[Coronation of the British monarch|coronation]] of [[George IV of the United Kingdom|King George IV]]. In 1823, [[James Weddell]] visited the Islands, gave the archipelago its present name (after the [[Orkney Islands]], [[Scotland]]) and also renamed some of the islands. Interestingly, the South Orkney Islands are located at roughly the same latitude south as the Orkney Islands are north (60°S vs 59°N), although it is not known if this was a factor behind the naming of the islands. Subsequently, the Islands were frequently visited by sealers and [[whaler]]s, but no thorough survey was ever done until the expedition of [[William Speirs Bruce]] on the ''Scotia'' in 1903, which overwintered at Laurie Island. Bruce surveyed the islands, reverted some of Weddell's name changes, and established a [[meteorology|meteorological]] station, which was sold to the Argentinian Government upon his departure in 1904. This base, renamed ''[[Orcadas Base|Orcadas]]'' in 1951, is still in operation [[as of 2007|today]] and is thus the oldest research station continuously staffed in the Antarctic. In 1908, the [[United Kingdom]] declared sovereignty over all Antarctic and South American territories south of their colony in the 50° parallel, including the South Orkney Islands. The Islands were then regarded to be part of the Falkland Islands Dependency. A biological research station on [[Signy Island]] was built in 1947 by the [[Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey|British Antarctic Survey]]. ==Geography and climate== The Islands are situated at [[latitude]]s about 60°30' to 60°83' S, and [[longitude]]s 44°25' to 46°25' W in the [[Southern Ocean]]. As a group of islands, the South Orkney Islands are located at approximately {{coor dm|60|35|S|045|30|W|}}{{coor title dm|60|35|S|045|30|W|}}. The [[archipelago]] comprises four main islands. [[Coronation Island]] is the largest island; its highest point is [[Mount Nivea]] and rises to 1266 [[metre|m]] above sea level. [[Laurie Island]] is the easternmost of the islands. The other islands are the smaller [[Powell Island]], [[Signy Island]] and [[Robertson Island]], as well as a few tiny ones named [[Saddle Island, South Orkney Islands|Saddle Islands]]. In total, these island have a surface of about 620 [[Square kilometer|km²]], most of which is covered with ice. The [[Inaccessible Islands (South Orkney Islands)|Inaccessible Islands]] about 15 [[Nautical mile|nm]] to the west are also considered part of the South Orkneys. The climate of the South Orkneys is generally cold, wet, and windy. Summers are short and cold (December to March) when the average temperatures reach about 2[[Celsius|°C]] and fall to about -10°C in winter (i.e., in July). The extrema reach about 12°C and -44°C, respectively. The seas around the islands are ice-covered from late April to November. ==Research stations== The two claimant nations maintain research stations on the Islands. * {{ARG}} [[Base Orcadas|Orcadas Base]] (since 1904 - bought as a meteorological station from the UK in 1904) * {{GBR}} [[Signy Island]] (since 1947) ==See also== * [[Antarctica]] ==External links== *[http://gdl.cdlr.strath.ac.uk/scotia/vserm/vserm0503.htm Description of Bruce's expedition] *[http://www.galenfrysinger.com/south_orkney_islands.htm Images] *[http://www.info.gov.ar/images/mapas/tierra.jpg Argentine Government Website with a map of the South Orkney Islands] [[Category:South Orkney Islands| ]] [[de:Südliche Orkneyinseln]] [[et:Lõuna-Orkney saared]] [[es:Islas Orcadas del Sur]] [[eo:Sudaj Orkadoj]] [[fr:Îles Orcades du Sud]] [[ko:사우스오크니 제도]] [[it:Isole Orcadi Meridionali]] [[nl:Zuidelijke Orkneyeilanden]] [[ja:サウス・オークニー諸島]] [[no:Sør-Orknøyene]] [[pl:Orkady Południowe]] [[ru:Южные Оркнейские острова]] [[sl:Južni Orkneyjski otoki]] [[sr:Јужна Оркнијска острва]] [[fi:Etelä-Orkneyn saaret]]