Mount Siple ( ) is a
potentially active Antarctic
The Antarctic (, ; commonly ) is the polar regions of Earth, polar region of Earth that surrounds the South Pole, lying within the Antarctic Circle. It is antipodes, diametrically opposite of the Arctic region around the North Pole.
The Antar ...
shield volcano
A shield volcano is a type of volcano named for its low profile, resembling a shield lying on the ground. It is formed by the eruption of highly fluid (low viscosity) lava, which travels farther and forms thinner flows than the more viscous lava ...
, rising to and dominating the northwest part of
Siple Island, which is separated from the
Bakutis Coast,
Marie Byrd Land, by the
Getz Ice Shelf.
Its youthful appearance strongly suggests that it last erupted in the
Holocene
The Holocene () is the current geologic time scale, geological epoch, beginning approximately 11,700 years ago. It follows the Last Glacial Period, which concluded with the Holocene glacial retreat. The Holocene and the preceding Pleistocene to ...
. It is capped by a summit
caldera
A caldera ( ) is a large cauldron-like hollow that forms shortly after the emptying of a magma chamber in a volcanic eruption. An eruption that ejects large volumes of magma over a short period of time can cause significant detriment to the str ...
, and
tuff cones lie on the lower flanks.
[ Recely Bluff is on the northeast slope of the mountain, about 7 nautical miles (13 km) from the peak. Its volume of is comparable to that of Mount Erebus.
Mount Siple is named after Paul A. Siple (1908–68), a US Antarctic explorer and geographer who took part in six Antarctic expeditions, including the two Byrd expeditions of 1928–30 and 1933–35 ( Siple Coast, Siple Island). He was in command of the West Base of the US Antarctic Service (USAS), 1939–41, and was navigator on all major exploratory flights from the base, including the flight on which Mount Siple was discovered.][
The volcano was visited in February 2017 as part of the Swiss Polar Institute's Antarctic Circumnavigation Expedition. ]Al Jazeera English
Al Jazeera English (AJE; , ) is a 24-hour English-language News broadcasting, news channel operating under Al Jazeera Media Network, which is funded by the government of Qatar. Al Jazeera introduced an English-language division in 2006. It is ...
Science and Technology editor Tarek Bazley was on board and filed a news report on his visit to a colony of Adele penguins breeding there.
See also
* List of volcanoes in Antarctica
* List of Ultras of Antarctica
*List of islands by highest point
This is a list of islands in the world ordered by their highest point; it lists island, islands with peaks by elevation. At the end of this article continent, continental landmasses are also included for comparison.
Island countries and territor ...
References
*
External links
Mount Siple
at skimountaineer.com
"Mount Siple, Antarctica" on Peakbagger
{{DEFAULTSORT:Siple
Polygenetic shield volcanoes
Calderas of Antarctica
Volcanoes of Marie Byrd Land
Dormant volcanoes