The Worcester Range () is a high coastal range, about long, in

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...

. It stands between

Skelton Glacier Skelton Glacier () is a large glacier flowing from the polar plateau into the Ross Ice Shelf at Skelton Inlet on the Hillary Coast, south of Victoria Land, Antarctica. Naming and exploration Skelton Glacier was named after the Skelton Inlet by ...

and

Mulock Glacier } The Mulock Glacier () is a large, heavily crevassed glacier which flows into the Ross Ice Shelf south of the Skelton Glacier in the Ross Dependency, Antarctica. Name The Mulock Glacier was named by the New Zealand Antarctic Place-Names Commit ...

on the western side of the

Ross Ice Shelf The Ross Ice Shelf is the largest ice shelf of Antarctica (, an area of roughly and about across: about the size of France). It is several hundred metres thick. The nearly vertical ice front to the open sea is more than long, and between high ...

. It is southwest of the

Royal Society Range The Royal Society Range () is a majestic range of mountains in Victoria Land, Antarctica, rising to along the west shore of McMurdo Sound between the Koettlitz, Skelton and Ferrar Glaciers. They are south of the Kukri Hills, southeast of the Q ...

and north of the Conway Range of the

Cook Mountains The Cook Mountains () is a group of mountains bounded by the Mulock and Darwin glaciers in Antarctica. They are south of the Worcester Range and north of the Darwin Mountains and the Britannia Range. Early exploration and naming Parts of t ...

Exploration and naming

The Worcester Range was probably named after the training ship in the Thames, in which many officers of early British Antarctic expeditions trained. It was discovered by the

British National Antarctic Expedition The ''Discovery'' Expedition of 1901–1904, known officially as the British National Antarctic Expedition, was the first official British exploration of the Antarctic regions since the voyage of James Clark Ross sixty years earlier (1839–1 ...

(BrNAE), 1901–04. The name seems to have been first applied on the charts of the British Antarctic Expedition, 1907–09.

Location

The range is part of the Prince Albert-McMurdo Range, which also includes the

Prince Albert Mountains The Prince Albert Mountains () are a major mountain group in Antarctica over long. Located in Victoria Land, they run north–south between the Priestley Glacier to the north and Ferrar Glacier to the south. They are south of the Deep Freeze ...

, in the

Victoria Land Victoria Land is a region in eastern Antarctica which fronts the western side of the Ross Sea and the Ross Ice Shelf, extending southward from about 70°30'S to 78th parallel south, 78°00'S, and westward from the Ross Sea to the edge of the Ant ...

region of New Zealand's

Ross Dependency The Ross Dependency is a region of Antarctica defined by a circular sector, sector originating at the South Pole, passing along longitudes 160th meridian east, 160° east to 150th meridian west, 150° west, and terminating at latitude 60th para ...

claim. These ranges are part of the larger

Transantarctic Mountains The Transantarctic Mountains (abbreviated TAM) comprise a mountain range of uplifted rock (primarily sedimentary) in Antarctica which extends, with some interruptions, across the continent from Cape Adare in northern Victoria Land to Coats L ...

, which span the continent. The Worcester Range is bounded to the east by the

, which flows south to the Ross Ice Shelf from the

Skelton Névé Skelton Glacier () is a large glacier flowing from the polar plateau into the Ross Ice Shelf at Skelton Inlet on the Hillary Coast, south of Victoria Land, Antarctica. Naming and exploration Skelton Glacier was named after the Skelton Inlet by ...

to the northwest. There are scattered peaks and

nunatak A nunatak (from Inuit language, Inuit ) is the summit or ridge of a mountain that protrudes from an ice field or glacier that otherwise covers most of the mountain or ridge. They often form natural pyramidal peaks. Isolated nunataks are also cal ...

s in the ice-covered land to the west. The

flows in a southeast direction to the ice cap, defining the southern boundary of the range.

Cape Timberlake Skelton Glacier () is a large glacier flowing from the polar plateau into the Ross Ice Shelf at Skelton Inlet on the Hillary Coast, south of Victoria Land, Antarctica. Naming and exploration Skelton Glacier was named after the Skelton Inlet by ...

is the southeast tip of the range, between

Evteev Glacier } The Mulock Glacier () is a large, heavily crevassed glacier which flows into the Ross Ice Shelf south of the Skelton Glacier in the Ross Dependency, Antarctica. Name The Mulock Glacier was named by the New Zealand Antarctic Place-Names Commit ...

and Skelton Glacier. Cape Teall is the southwest tip of the range, where Evteev Glacier meets Mulock Glacier.

Glaciers

Glaciers flowing from the range into Skelton Glacier include, from north to south, Delta Glacier ending south of Delta Bluff, Dilemma Glacier,

Ant Hill Glacier Skelton Glacier () is a large glacier flowing from the polar plateau into the Ross Ice Shelf at Skelton Inlet on the Hillary Coast, south of Victoria Land, Antarctica. Naming and exploration Skelton Glacier was named after the Skelton Inlet by ...

, ending south of Ant Hill and north of Bareface Bluff,

Mason Glacier Skelton Glacier () is a large glacier flowing from the polar plateau into the Ross Ice Shelf at Skelton Inlet on the Hillary Coast, south of Victoria Land, Antarctica. Naming and exploration Skelton Glacier was named after the Skelton Inlet by ...

ending south of Bareface Bluff, and Evteev Glacier, flowing from south of The Podium past Cape Timberlake. The

Kehle Glacier } The Mulock Glacier () is a large, heavily crevassed glacier which flows into the Ross Ice Shelf south of the Skelton Glacier in the Ross Dependency, Antarctica. Name The Mulock Glacier was named by the New Zealand Antarctic Place-Names Commit ...

forms to the southwest of Mount Speyer and flows southwest to enter Mulock Glacier.

Features

Features of the Worcester Range include, from north to south, Mount Harmsworth, Delta Bluff, Northcliffe Peak, Ant Hill, Bareface Bluff, Mount Speyer, Mount Dawson-Lambton and The Podium.

Mount Harmsworth

. A prominent ice-covered peak, high, at the northwest side of the head of Delta Glacier in the Worcester Range. Discovered by the

(BrNAE) (1901-04) and named for Sir

Alfred Harmsworth Alfred Charles William Harmsworth, 1st Viscount Northcliffe (15 July 1865 – 14 August 1922), was a British newspaper and publishing magnate. As owner of the ''Daily Mail'' and the ''Daily Mirror'', he was an early developer of popular journal ...

, later Viscount Northcliffe, a generous contributor to the expedition.

Delta Bluff

. A steep triangular rock bluff immediately north of the mouth of Delta Glacier, on the west side of Skelton Glacier. Surveyed and climbed in 1957 by the New Zealand party of the

Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition The Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition (CTAE) of 1955–1958 was a Commonwealth-sponsored expedition that successfully completed the first overland crossing of Antarctica, via the South Pole. It was the first expedition to reach the South ...

(CTAE) (1956–58) and so named because of the shape of the bluff.

Northcliffe Peak

. A prominent peak, high, rising southeast of Mount Harmsworth. Surveyed and named in 1957 by the N.Z. party of the CTAE (1956-58) because of its association with Mount Harmsworth. Sir Alfred Harmsworth, a generous contributor to the BrnAE (1901-04), was later created Viscount Northcliff.

Mount Marks

A broad ice-covered mountain rising to high, north-northwest of Mount Speyer in Worcester Range. Named after

Rodney Marks Rodney David Marks (13 March 1968 – 12 May 2000) was an Australian astrophysicist who died from methanol poisoning while working in Antarctica. Early life Marks was born in Geelong, Victoria, in Australia and received his education from the ...

(1968-2000), an Australian citizen who died while conducting astrophysical research as a member of the 2000 winter party at the NSF South Pole Station. He was employed by the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, working on the Antarctic Submillimeter Telescope and Remote Observatory, a research project of the University of Chicago's Center for Astrophysical Research in Antarctica (CARA). He previously had spent the 1998 winter at the Pole as part of CARA's South Pole Infrared Explorer project.

Ant Hill

. A hill, high, rising steeply on the west side of the Skelton Glacier between Ant Hill Glacier and Dilemma Glacier. Surveyed and named in 1957 by the New Zealand party of the CTAE, 1956–58. So named by geological members because of the prominent anticline in the bluff below the hill.

Bareface Bluff

. A large, sheer snow-free bluff, high, rising above Skelton Glacier, between Ant Hill Glacier and Mason Glacier. Surveyed and given this descriptive name in 1957 by the New Zealand party of the CTAE, 1956–58.

Mount Speyer

. A mountain, high, standing directly at the head of Kehle Glacier in the Worcester Range. Discovered by the BrnAE (1901-04) and named for Sir Edgar Speyer, a contributor to the expedition.

Mount Dawson-Lambton

. A mountain, high, standing southwest of the summit of Mount Speyer in the Worcester Range. Discovered by the BrnAE (1901-04) and named after the Misses Dawson-Lambton, contributors to the expedition.

Jensen Rampart

Steep rock cliffs that rise to at the southwest edge of Worcester Range. The cliffs are west of Mount Speyer and overlook the north side of Mulock Glacier. Named after Kate Jensen, NOAA field team leader at South Pole Station; also worked for ASA and Raytheon at South Pole.

The Podium

. A high, flat ice-covered bluff, in extent, which projects at the south end of the Worcester Range and surmounts the ice-filled embayment between Cape Teall and Cape Timberlake. So named by United States

Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names The Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names (ACAN or US-ACAN) is an advisory committee of the United States Board on Geographic Names responsible for recommending commemorative names for features in Antarctica. History The committee was established ...

(US-ACAN) in 1964 because of its position relative to nearby features and its resemblance to a podium.

Nearby features

Isolated features to the north and west of the range include (from north east to south west) Clem Nunatak, Escalade Peak, Tate Peak, Swartz Nunataks and Mount Marvel.

Clem Nunatak

. Isolated rock nunatak, high, standing at the west side of Skelton Glacier, southwest of Halfway Nunatak. Named by US-ACAN in 1964 for Willis R. Clem, a construction mechanic at

McMurdo Station McMurdo Station is an American Antarctic research station on the southern tip of Ross Island. It is operated by the United States through the United States Antarctic Program (USAP), a branch of the National Science Foundation. The station is ...

in 1959.

Escalade Peak

. Prominent peak, high, about east of the south end of Boomerang Range. So named by the N.Z. party of the CTAE (1957-58) because its vertical pitches and platforms provide a ladder-like route to the summit.

Tate Peak

. Sharp peak, high, standing east of Escalade Peak at the south side of Skelton Névé. Named by US-ACAN in 1964 for Lieutenant T.N. Tate, United States Navy, public works officer at McMurdo Station, 1963.

Swartz Nunataks

. Two prominent nunataks, high, protruding through the ice midway between the north part of the Worcester Range and Tate Peak. Named by US-ACAN in 1964 for Lt. Philip K. Swartz Jr., MC, United States Navy, officer in charge of the South Pole Station in 1961.

Mount Marvel

. A mountain, high, standing south of Escalade Peak, near the head of Mulock Glacier. Named by US-ACAN in 1964 for Commander R. Marvel, United States Navy, officer in charge of Detachment Alpha at McMurdo Station in 1963.

References

Sources

* * * * * {{Include-USGov , agency=United States Geological Survey Mountain ranges of the Ross Dependency Hillary Coast