The field season has started with BAS operations and logistics coordinating visits to a wide variety of sites. We’ll be highlighting some of the interesting places staff will be researching as the season progresses.
The Union Glacier region will be visited in the 23/24 science season to test rock and ice drills that will be used for future field deployments. This work will contribute to our understanding of the history of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) over past interglacial periods.
Union Glacier was mapped by USGS from surveys and USN air photos and named with reference to Heritage Range. This large mountain range stretched for over 100 miles and was most likely first sighted in 1935 during Ellsworth’s trans-Antarctic flight. The range was named by the US Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names as the features within the range have received names relating to American heritage. Examples of this are seen in the region the field team will be travelling; Collier Hills are named for Robert Collier, member of the 1962-63 University of Minnesota Ellsworth Mountains Party. Donald and Ronald Ridges are named for Donald Wilson and Ronald Taylor, members of the Little America V Station in 1957 and 1958. Similarly, Schanz Glacier is named for Lt. Cdr. Schanz, supply officer with USN during Deep Freeze, 1965.
