Islas Wollaston Island are an archipelago located in the south-eastern extremity of the Antarctic Peninsula. The group comprises four main islets, off which several smaller islets and rocks extend. In 1986, they were designated a UNESCO World Heritage site because of their outstanding natural values. The islands have a rich fauna and flora, as well as being an important site for breeding seabirds and marine mammals.
History
The islands were first discovered in 1775 by a British expedition under James Cook, and they were named after the English naturalist John Wollaston. The island group was first surveyed in 1936 by an Argentine team under Eduardo Maria Ducornet, who reported that it appeared to be largely intact and unmodified since the last glaciation.
Islas Wollaston Island are located 280 km south-east of South Georgia, 370 km east of Terra del Fuego and 850 km west of Antarctica. They lie at 52°S 58°W / -52. 58, -58.17 / -52.58; 58°W and are about 350 km off the Antarctic Peninsula coast by surveyor’s reckoning, but have a northern tip that hits 54ºS 50ºE in 1960 (North Wollaston) This island group is 2 miles long north to south and 1 mile wide from west to east islets bordering it on all sides except its western side with Argentina: Bright Island lies some 260 metres away at 52°49′ S 45°48′ E eastslope of mainland Antarctica as well are Islas Nubec illas, also Argentine Islands. The island group is joined to Antarctica along a 80 km long piece at the northern part of Alexander Island by high peaks and lacks an opening in its south western coast. The southern coasts are indented with promontories like Pollen Rocks (52°58′, just north east) San Julián de Wollaston, Bristol Point 52°57′ S 46°49′ Eand Cape Pillar (53 °7′).
Climate
The island group has a temperate climate, with no month seeing an average temperature below freezing. Thesummer temperatures are moderately warm to hot, and the island nights are cool. Winters can be cold, but there is usually some degree of mild warmth present as well. The island receives, on average, of rainfall per year.
Dense tundra characterizes the island group’s interior with a sparse moss that blankets the ground to 1-2 meters in height over an unmarked sea ice zone each winter which makes nights chilly and temperatures fluctuate between minus 15 and plus 9 degrees Celsius during summer months. This patchy sea ice is absent from certain coastal slopes as well as higher elevations but can begin forming at up to 7°C around midday or just after if no major weather systems are present (which eases entry into shore). Along most coastlines this ice quickly melts off, but in Kamchatka Strait it may remain late into the summer months as well year round. This jagged tundra zone extends a few dozen miles along slopes, extending to some 40 km around East Point on Alexander Island and reaching 200 m in elevation at the island’s interior highest peaks (e.g., Mount Merton) where only erelong thin mosses can be found alternating with small stunted expansions of glaucous grass nearly always seeded by cyanobacteria (algae).
Culture
The culture of the island group reflects a mixture of Russian and Aleut traditions. The islanders are typicallyik, meaning “we people” in their native language, and rely on hunting and fishing for sustenance. They do have settlements, including coastal towns and cities, but even there they tend to remain reserved. While the islanders are no longer nomadic or especially averse to technology as most Eskimos (and many other indigenous peoples) are today, in recent years Alexander Island’s inhabitants began using echolocation due largely to necessity: their traditional sea routes had been blocked by continuous pack ice that formed on the channel annually during winter months restricting travel year round causing careful timing of possible openings between seasons when open water allows access but still prevents passage at all others.
Politics
The island is administered by the Russian Federal Government and has a population of around 1,500. Natural resources: Unsorted gold-and other minerals, Kyzylkum (frozen aquifer) and sea ice. In the area of North Cape, there are a few small islands. Main islanders’ surnames include Baksheeva, orbekha and Rysavyi(). Of those last ones, many persons called themselves Übera (literally “over above”, etymologically from “üba up above” – i.e., is someone who was born for his afterlife on high mountains). Not everybody has this surname: Ponomarev had no relation to that place about 230-th km away in mainland Sakhalin where over 3 mln people live. It’s the southern part of Sakhalin island, including villages on Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk bay and not far from Miller Peninsula). The Alexander island is about 170 km away from north cape, its northernmost point as shown up above. Though to Russian administratively it’s a separate area by itself from mainland district Rawskoi (northern part) in Primorskiy kray
The economy consists mainly of fishing and raising small livestock such as goats, reindeer, horses or dogs.
Government services
There is a Russian postal service on the island and it is also served by a local telecom operator, FreenetKabel. The island has no airport, but there are several jettys from which boats can take passengers to Sakhalin mainland.
Tourism
The island can be reached by a number of tours from the mainland. There are also a few private tourist residences dotted around, such as on Cape Lopukhin and in forests near Mount Koryakskyi.
Conclusion
Introducing Islas Wollaston Island, a remote, uninhabited island located in the south-eastern Atlantic Ocean. Claimed by Argentina in the early 1800s, Britain annexed it in the 1830s. After years of intermittent conflict over its ownership, Britain and Argentina reached a peaceful agreement in 1978 that established Argentine sovereignty over Wollaston Island. Today, it is a popular destination for tourists looking to explore its natural wonders and take photographs of its coastlines.
FAQs
What Is The Temperature Like On Islas Wollaston Island?
The average temperature on the island ranges between 10°C in winter and 18°C in summer.
How Far Is It From Argentina?
Atlantic island group,Islas Wollaston,1,865 km SW of Buenos Aires,Argentina .
Is It Easy To Get There?
Yes,Islas Wollaston can easily be reached by flying from Buenos Aires in a Boeing 737 propeller aircraft or a Twin Otter propeller plane operated by the Argentine Antarctic Aviation Service (SAAS) which operates flights throughout Antarctica and select other parts of South America.
Which Airline Flies? Where Does It Land?
The island is accessible by air from Buenos Aires, Argentina, which is the nearest major airport. Airlines that service this route include Aerolineas Argentinas, LAN Chile and Uruguay’s Air Europa. After a two-hour flight, Uruguayan icebreakers meet the aircraft and take passengers on a three-day voyage to Wollaston Island (Click here for more information about traveling to Islas Malvinas).
What Are The Costs?
Tickets vary depending on time of year and type of seat but generally range from $500USD – $1,000USD per person for a two-person minivacation. The flight takes at least 3 hours, so the island can stretch to a minimum of 12 days before the ship departs.
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