Bunger oasis
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Bunger oasis |
The Bunger Oasis is an Antarctic oasis (a largely ice-free area) on the Knox Coast in the far west of Wilkesland , on the border with Queen Mary Land , and is located about six kilometers off the coast of East Antarctica . The Bunger Hills are part of this oasis . The approximate geographical position is 66 ° 16 ' S , 100 ° 45' O .
With an area of 952 km², it is the largest of the East Antarctic oases and is surrounded by glaciers. It is bounded in the west by the Denman / Scott glacier system, in the south and northeast by smaller glaciers and in the southeast by the Antarctic ice sheet. To the north it is separated from the open ocean by the Shackleton Ice Shelf with a width of 50 to 70 km. The terrain is hilly, with a maximum elevation of 165 m above sea level.
The oasis has a mild climate by Antarctic standards; the mean annual temperature was determined at a meteorological station to be −11.2 ° C, with measured extreme values between 6.9 and −49.6 ° C. Countless ponds and brackish water lakes (Epischelf lakes) are distributed over the oasis .
The Bunger Oasis was discovered in 1912 by an Australian expedition, which only visited the western edge of the area and did not recognize its geographical features. In January 1947 the American pilot David E. Bunger flew over the area as part of Operation Highjump . Aerial photographs were taken and he landed on an icy lake. Systematic research began in 1956 by Soviet scientists who were based in Mirny station, 350 km away . From October 15, 1956, the Soviet Union operated a summer station called Oasis (Оазис) in the center of the area at 66 ° 16 ′ S , 100 ° 45 ′ E , with two buildings for eight people. This was handed over to Poland on January 23, 1959 , was named AB Dobrowolski Station , and was then only manned for a few weeks. The station was only reactivated for a short time in February 1979, but a wintering in 1979 failed and the station's residents had to be evacuated to Mirny Station on March 17, 1979 .
About seven kilometers away, at 66 ° 15 ′ S , 100 ° 36 ′ E , Australia has maintained the Edgeworth David Base summer station since 1986 .
literature
- Thomas Kulbe: The Late Quaternary Climate and Environmental History of the Bunger Oasis, East Antarctica . (= Reports on polar research. 254). Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research, Bremerhaven 1997; accessed on July 10, 2014 (PDF file; 3 MB)