Messier Channel is a channel located in

Patagonia Patagonia () refers to a geographical region that encompasses the southern end of South America, governed by Argentina and Chile. The region comprises the southern section of the Andes Mountains with lakes, fjords, temperate rainforests, and ...

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the eas ...

. It trends north–south between

Wellington Island Wellington Island is an island west of Southern Patagonian Ice Field, Chile. It has an area of 5,556 km2 and most of the island forms part of Bernardo O'Higgins National Park. It is home to the last Kawésqar people, living in the villag ...

and other Pacific islands and the continent, and is bounded on the north by the

Gulf of Penas The Gulf of Penas (''Golfo de Penas'' in Spanish, meaning "gulf of distress") is a body of water located south of the Taitao Peninsula, Chile. Geography It is open to the westerly storms of the Pacific Ocean, but it affords entrance to several nat ...

. Southward the name of this inside passage changes first to ''

Angostura Inglesa English Narrows (Spanish ''Angostura Inglesa'') is a contracted passage in Messier Channel in the southwestern coast of Chile. Here it is only wide, but it presents no great difficulty or danger (excepting to very long vessels) unless a vessel ...

'' (English Narrows) and then to '' Paso del Indio''. The channel is named after

Charles Messier Charles Messier (; 26 June 1730 – 12 April 1817) was a French astronomer. He published an astronomical catalogue consisting of 110 nebulae and star clusters, which came to be known as the ''Messier objects''. Messier's purpose f ...

, who was a French astronomer. It is a

fjord In physical geography, a fjord or fiord () is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created by a glacier. Fjords exist on the coasts of Alaska, Antarctica, British Columbia, Chile, Denmark, Germany, Greenland, the Faroe Islands, Icela ...

in the Scandinavian sense of the word. A depth of 1,358 m has been measured in the north part of this channel, making it one of the deepest fjords in the world. Messier Channel is surrounded by the

Bernardo O'Higgins National Park Bernardo O'Higgins National Park () is the largest of the protected areas in Chile, covering an area of in both the Aysén and Magallanes and Antártica Chilena regions. Management of this and other national parks in Chile is entrusted to the ...

and the

Katalalixar National Reserve Katalalixar National Reserve is a natural reserve located in an archipelago between Southern Patagonian Ice Field, and Northern Patagonian Ice Field in Aysén del General Carlos Ibáñez del Campo Region of Chile. The reserve was created in 1983 ...

. The Fallos- Ladrillero- Picton Channel combination is an optional route to the Messier-

Grappler Grappling, in hand-to-hand combat, describes sports that consist of gripping or seizing the opponent. Grappling is used at close range to gain a physical advantage over an opponent, either by imposing a position or causing injury. Grappling is ...

- Wide Channels route between the Golfo de Penas and the Trinidad Channel. Just north of Angostura Inglesa (English Narrows), is the wreck of MV ''Capitán Leonidas'', a small freighter that ran aground on the Bajo Cotopaxi (Cotopaxi Bank) in 1968. The hulk provides warning as both a shipwreck and lighthouse (NGA-nr: 2068, Adm.: G 1552).

References

Past Glaciations and "Little Ice Ages"Multilingual substratum and superstratum in the toponymy of the south of Chile
(Spanish)
Piret et al. (2017) - Gridded bathymetry of the Baker-Martinez fjord complex (Chile, 48°S) v1
Straits of Chile Bodies of water of Aysén Region Bodies of water of Magallanes Region {{MagellanAntarctic-geo-stub

See also

References