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Bridgeman Island, Antarctica, ‘burning mount’ or old eroded volcano?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 August 2021

Karen Louise Williams Open the ORCID record for Karen Louise Williams [Opens in a new window]
Karen Louise Williams*
Affiliation:
10A Waihora Street, Taupo3330, New Zealand
*
Author for correspondence: K. L. Williams, E-mail: [email protected]
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Abstract

Deception, Bridgeman and Penguin are the three most recently active volcanic islands in the South Shetland Islands. Since the discovery of the archipelago in 1819, Deception Island has erupted on frequent occasions, most recently in August 1970. A number of nineteenth-century observers reported fumarolic or volcanic activity from Bridgeman Island. No eyewitness accounts of activity from Penguin Island have been found. A chronological list detailing the historic reports from Bridgeman Island was compiled to compare and establish their veracity. This process revealed a consistency of observation from independent observers. An effort has been made to consider if any of these reports of activity may have belonged instead to Penguin Island volcano, 60 km (32 NM) away. A review of the timing of discovery and availability of the first charts of the South Shetlands was also examined to narrow the period when mariners might have mistaken one island for another. Only the three earliest observations of activity from an unnamed volcano, during the short period when no maps were available, may be questioned. A useful chart of the region was published in 1822, and all subsequent observations of activity were from Bridgeman, not Penguin Island.

Keywords

BridgemanPenguin IslandVolcanic activitySouth Shetland Islands
Type
Research Article
Information
Polar Record , Volume 57 , 2021 , e33
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press

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