The Churchill Mountains are a

mountain range A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have arise ...

group of the

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

System, located in the

Ross Dependency The Ross Dependency is a region of Antarctica defined by a sector originating at the South Pole, passing along longitudes 160° east to 150° west, and terminating at latitude 60° south. It is claimed by New Zealand, a claim accepted only ...

region of

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

. They border 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 h ...

, between

Byrd Glacier The Byrd Glacier is a major glacier in Antarctica, about long and wide, draining an extensive area of the polar plateau and flowing eastward between the Britannia Range and Churchill Mountains to discharge into the Ross Ice Shelf at Barne In ...

and

Nimrod Glacier The Nimrod Glacier is a major glacier about 135 km (85 mi) long, flowing from the polar plateau in a northerly direction through the Transantarctic Mountains between the Geologists and Miller Ranges, then northeasterly between the Chur ...

. Several of the range's highest

summit A summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. The topographic terms acme, apex, peak (mountain peak), and zenith are synonymous. The term (mountain top) is generally used only for a m ...

s, including Mounts Egerton, Field, Nares, Wharton, and Albert Markham were first seen and named by the

Discovery 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 (1839–184 ...

of 1901–1904 (aka: British National Antarctic Expedition), under

Robert Falcon Scott Captain Robert Falcon Scott, , (6 June 1868 – c. 29 March 1912) was a British Royal Navy officer and explorer who led two expeditions to the Antarctic regions: the ''Discovery'' expedition of 1901–1904 and the ill-fated ''Terra Nov ...

The mountains were mapped in detail by the

USGS The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, ...

from

Tellurometer The tellurometer was the first successful microwave electronic distance measurement equipment. The name derives from the Latin ''tellus'', meaning Earth. History The original tellurometer, known as the Micro-Distancer MRA 1, was introduced in 19 ...

surveys during 1960–61, and by

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

air photos in 1960. They were named by the

US-ACAN 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 ...

for Sir Winston Churchill.

Mountains and peaks

;Mount Albert Markham Mount Albert Markham is a striking flat-topped

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher t ...

, standing midway between Mount Nares and Pyramid Mountain. Discovered by the

and named for Admiral Sir

Albert Hastings Markham Admiral (Royal Navy), Admiral Sir Albert Hastings Markham (11 November 1841 – 28 October 1918) was a British List of polar explorers, explorer, author, and officer in the Royal Navy. In 1903 he was invested as a Knight Commander of the Orde ...

, a member of the Ship Committee for the expedition. ;Mount Egerton Mount Egerton is a mountain rising five km north-northwest of Mount Field. Discovered by the Discovery Expedition and named for Admiral Sir

George Le Clerc Egerton George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...

, a member of the

Arctic Expedition This list of Arctic expeditions is a timeline of historic Arctic exploration and explorers of the Arctic. 15th century * 1472: Didrik Pining and Hans Pothorst mark the first of the cartographic expeditions to Greenland * 1496: , venturing out ...

of 1875-1876, one of Scott's advisors for this expedition. ;Mount Field Mount Field is a mountain standing 5 km SSE of Mount Egerton. Discovered and named by the Discovery Expedition. ;Mount Frost Mount Frost is a mountain standing 4 mi S of Mount Zinkovich, at the southern side of the head of Silk Glacier. Named by

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) for Lieutenant Col. Foy B. Frost, USAF, commanding officer of the Ninth Troop Carrier Squadron, which furnished

C-124 Globemaster The Douglas C-124 Globemaster II, nicknamed "Old Shaky", is an American heavy-lift cargo aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company in Long Beach, California. The C-124 was the primary heavy-lift transport for United States Air Force (U ...

airlift support between New Zealand and the Antarctic and from McMurdo Sound inland to Byrd, Eights, and South Pole Stations during U.S. Navy (USN) Operation Deep Freeze 1962. ;Mount Hamilton Mount Hamilton stands at the eastern edge of Kent Plateau, south of Mount Tuatara. Discovered by the Discovery Expedition and named for Admiral Sir

Richard Vesey Hamilton Sir Richard Vesey Hamilton (28 May 1829 – 17 September 1912) was a Royal Navy officer. As a junior officer he twice volunteered to take part in missions to search for Sir John Franklin's ill-fated expedition to find the Northwest Passage ...

, who served on Arctic voyages (1850–54) and was a member of the Ship Committee for this expedition. ;Mount Nares Mount Nares is a massive mountain located just south of Mount Albert Markham and overlooking the head of Flynn Glacier. Discovered by the Discovery Expedition led by Scott, who named it for Sir

George S. Nares Vice-Admiral Sir George Strong Nares (24 April 1831 – 15 January 1915) was a Royal Navy officer and Arctic explorer. He commanded the ''Challenger'' Expedition, and the British Arctic Expedition. He was highly thought of as a leader a ...

, captain of an Arctic expedition in 1875-76, and a member of the Ship Committee for Scott's expedition. ;Pyramid Mountain Pyramid Mountain is a conspicuous pyramidal mountain standing 4 mi N of Mount Albert Markham. Discovered and named by the Discovery Expedition. ;Mount Tuatara Mount Tuatara is a mountain standing on the southern side of Byrd Glacier, 7 mi N of Mount Hamilton. Mapped by the New Zealand Geological Survey Antarctic Expedition (NZGSAE) (1960–61) who so named it because the long spiny summit ridge resembles a lizard. The

Tuatara Tuatara (''Sphenodon punctatus'') are reptiles endemic to New Zealand. Despite their close resemblance to lizards, they are part of a distinct lineage, the order Rhynchocephalia. The name ''tuatara'' is derived from the Māori language and ...

is a reptile endemic to New Zealand. ;Turk Peak Turk Peak is a large hump-shaped peak being the central of three peaks on a ridge 6 mi N of Mount Zinkovich. Named by Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names (US-ACAN) for Lieutenant Col. Wilbert Turk, commander of the 61st Troop Carrier Squadron which initiated the flights of

C-130 Hercules The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 was originally des ...

aircraft in Antarctica in January 1960. ;Mount Wharton Mount Wharton is a mountain standing 8.8 km (5.5 mi) west of Turk Peak. Discovered by the Discovery Expedition and named for Sir William Wharton, Hydrographer to the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by Kingdom of England, English and Kingdom of Scotland, Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were foug ...

, 1884-1904. ;Young Peaks Young Peaks is a group of peaks along a ridge running west–east, starting 5 km east of

Mount Coley Mount Coley () is a mountain, high, standing south of Mount Frost, in the Churchill Mountains. It was named by the Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names for Commander Vernon J. Coley, commanding officer of U.S. Navy Squadron VX-6 Air Developmen ...

. The feature is 5 km long with summits rising above 1200 m. Flanked by

Lee Glacier Nursery Glacier () is a coastal glacier in the Churchill Mountains of Anarctica. Location The glacier is about 20 nautical miles (37 km) long. It flows southeast along the west side of Darley Hills to enter Ross Ice Shelf just south of Cape ...

at north and Jorda Glacier at south. Named in honor of

Pamela Young Pamela Margaret Young (née Rawlinson) was the first New Zealand woman to live and work in Antarctica. In 1969–70, she worked at Cape Bird as field assistant to her husband Euan, a biologist, and was among the first six women to fly to the Sou ...

who was the first female event member in the New Zealand Antarctic Research Program (NZARP). ;Mount Zinkovich Mount Zinkovich is a pointed mountain standing 4 miles (6 km) north of Mount Frost at the north side of the head of

Silk Glacier Silk Glacier () is a glacier, 10 miles (16 km) long, draining the east slopes of the Churchill Mountains between Mount Frost and Mount Zinkovich to enter Nursery Glacier. Named by Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names The Advisory Committe ...

. Named by

(US-ACAN) for Lieutenant Colonel

Michael Zinkovich Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name "Michael" * Michael (archangel), ''first'' of God's archangels in the Jewish, Christian and ...

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army S ...

(USAF), commanding officer of the 1710th Aerial Port Squadron, which furnished airlift support between

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...

and Antarctica, and from

McMurdo Sound McMurdo Sound is a sound in Antarctica. It is the southernmost navigable body of water in the world, and is about from the South Pole. Captain James Clark Ross discovered the sound in February 1841, and named it after Lt. Archibald McMurdo of ...

inland to

Byrd Byrd commonly refers to: * William Byrd (c. 1540 – 1623), an English composer of the Renaissance * Richard E. Byrd (1888–1957), an American naval officer and explorer Byrd or Byrds may also refer to: Other people * Byrd (surname), includin ...

, Eights, and

South Pole Station South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sun� ...

s during U.S. Navy

Operation Deep Freeze Operation Deep Freeze (OpDFrz or ODF) is codename for a series of United States missions to Antarctica, beginning with "Operation Deep Freeze I" in 1955–56, followed by "Operation Deep Freeze II", "Operation Deep Freeze III", and so on. (There w ...

1962.

Sub−ranges

Sub−ranges of the Churchill Mountains include: ;Carlstrom Foothills ;Carnegie Range ;Cobham Range ;Darley Hills ;Holyoake Range ;Nash Range ;Surveyors Range

Other features

* Ahern Glacier *

Algie Knoll The Carnegie Range () is a mountain range in the Churchill Mountains of the Transantarctic Mountains System, in the Ross Dependency of Antarctica. Location The Carnegie Range is long, running north–south between Errant Glacier and the Holyo ...

Alligator Eyes The Nash Range () is a mainly ice-covered coastal range in the Churchill Mountains of Antarctica. Location The Nash Range is 40 nautical miles (70 km) long, bordering the west side of the Ross Ice Shelf between the Dickey and Nimrod Glacie ...

* Black Icefalls * Bradshaw Peak * Brecher Glacier *

Carlstrom Foothills The Carlstrom Foothills () are a group of peaks and ridges running north–south between Mount Albert Markham and Kelly Plateau in the Churchill Mountains. The feature is long with summits rising to . It was named by the Advisory Committee on Anta ...

Carr Crest The Kent Plateau () is an ice-covered plateau in the northern extreme of the Churchill Mountains of Antarctica. Name Kent Plateau was named by the Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names for Commander Donald F. Kent, U.S. Navy, logistics officer ...

Cerberus Peak Holyoake Range () is a mountain range in the southern section of the Churchill Mountains, extending in a northwest–southeast direction for about between Prince Philip Glacier and Errant Glacier. It and the Churchill Mountains are part of the ...

* Chapman Snowfield *

Cooper Snowfield Cooper Snowfield () is a snowfield with an area of about in the Churchill Mountains of Antarctica. Location The snowfield rises to over and is nearly encircled by ridges connecting Mount Field, Mount Durnford, and Mount Liard. It was named a ...

Cupcake Peaks The Kent Plateau () is an ice-covered plateau in the northern extreme of the Churchill Mountains of Antarctica. Name Kent Plateau was named by the Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names for Commander Donald F. Kent, U.S. Navy, logistics officer ...

* Donnally Glacier *

East Egerton Cooper Snowfield () is a snowfield with an area of about in the Churchill Mountains of Antarctica. Location The snowfield rises to over and is nearly encircled by ridges connecting Mount Field, Mount Durnford, and Mount Liard. It was named a ...

* Elder Peak *

Entrikin Glacier Nicholson Peninsula () is a broad ice-covered peninsula about 15 nautical miles (28 km) long, between Couzens Bay and Matterson Inlet on the Shackleton Coast on the west side of the Ross Ice Shelf, Antarctica. Location Nicholson Peninsula fa ...

* Festive Plateau * Flynn Glacier *

Gamble Glacier The Byrd Glacier is a major glacier in Antarctica, about long and wide, draining an extensive area of the polar plateau and flowing eastward between the Britannia Range and Churchill Mountains to discharge into the Ross Ice Shelf at Barne I ...

Horseshoe Nunatak Swithinbank Range () is a small range from the Churchill Mountains, Location The Swithinbank Range extends eastward between Donnally and Ahern Glaciers to the west side of Starshot Glacier. It faces the Surveyors Range on the east side of the S ...

* Jorda Glacier *

Keating Massif The Kent Plateau () is an ice-covered plateau in the northern extreme of the Churchill Mountains of Antarctica. Name Kent Plateau was named by the Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names for Commander Donald F. Kent, U.S. Navy, logistics officer ...

Kelly Plateau Kelly Plateau () is an ice-covered plateau, about long and from wide, on the east side of the Churchill Mountains, Antarctica, between the lower parts of Jorda Glacier and Flynn Glacier. It was named by the Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names fo ...

* Kent Plateau *

Kilroy Bluff Mount Zinkovich () is a pointed mountain, high, standing north of Mount Frost at the north side of the head of Silk Glacier in the Churchill Mountains of Antarctica. Name Mount Zinkovich was named by US-ACAN for Lt. Col. Michael Zinkovich, USA ...

Kiwi Pass The Kent Plateau () is an ice-covered plateau in the northern extreme of the Churchill Mountains of Antarctica. Name Kent Plateau was named by the Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names for Commander Donald F. Kent, U.S. Navy, logistics officer ...

Mansergh Wall Surveyors Range () is a long mountain range in the Churchill Mountains of Antarctica. Location Surveyors Range is long, extending north along the east side of Starshot Glacier from the Thompson Mountain area to the glacier's terminus at the Ro ...

McLay Glacier McLay Glacier () is a glacier flowing southeast into Nursery Glacier, in the Churchill Mountains of Antarctica. Mount Durnford, Mount Stewart and Mount Liard flank the north and Turk Peak and Bradshaw Peak flank the south. It was named in honor of ...

Miscast Nunataks The Kent Plateau () is an ice-covered plateau in the northern extreme of the Churchill Mountains of Antarctica. Name Kent Plateau was named by the Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names for Commander Donald F. Kent, U.S. Navy, logistics officer ...

* Mount Durnford *

Mount Frost Mount Frost () is a mountain, 2,350 m, in the Churchill Mountains of Antarctica, standing 4 nautical miles (7 km) south of Mount Zinkovich, at the south side of the head of Silk Glacier. Named by Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names (US-ACA ...

Mount Hubble Cooper Snowfield () is a snowfield with an area of about in the Churchill Mountains of Antarctica. Location The snowfield rises to over and is nearly encircled by ridges connecting Mount Field, Mount Durnford, and Mount Liard. It was named a ...

* Mount Liard * Mount Massam *

Mount Moa The Kent Plateau () is an ice-covered plateau in the northern extreme of the Churchill Mountains of Antarctica. Name Kent Plateau was named by the Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names for Commander Donald F. Kent, U.S. Navy, logistics officer ...

Mount Morse Mount Morse () is a mountain rising to over at the end of the ridge extending west from Mount Egerton, in the Churchill Mountains of Antarctica. The feature is west of the Mount Egerton summit. Mount Morse was named by the Advisory Committee on A ...

Peacock Heights The Carlstrom Foothills () are a group of peaks and ridges running north–south between Mount Albert Markham and Kelly Plateau in the Churchill Mountains. The feature is long with summits rising to . It was named by the Advisory Committee on Anta ...

Prior Cliff Cooper Snowfield () is a snowfield with an area of about in the Churchill Mountains of Antarctica. Location The snowfield rises to over and is nearly encircled by ridges connecting Mount Field, Mount Durnford, and Mount Liard. It was named a ...

Reid Bluff Swithinbank Range () is a small range from the Churchill Mountains, Location The Swithinbank Range extends eastward between Donnally and Ahern Glaciers to the west side of Starshot Glacier. It faces the Surveyors Range on the east side of the S ...

Roberts Pike The Kent Plateau () is an ice-covered plateau in the northern extreme of the Churchill Mountains of Antarctica. Name Kent Plateau was named by the Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names for Commander Donald F. Kent, U.S. Navy, logistics officer ...

* Rutland Nunatak *

Sivjee Glacier Starshot Glacier () is a glacier 50 nautical miles (90 km) long, flowing from the polar plateau eastward through the Churchill Mountains, then north along the west side of Surveyors Range, entering the Ross Ice Shelf south of Cape Parr. So na ...

* Sleek Spur * Soza Icefalls * Stark Ridge * Swithinbank Range * Taniwha Cove

References

{{Authority control Mountain ranges of the Ross Dependency Transantarctic Mountains Shackleton Coast

Mountains and peaks

Sub−ranges

Other features

See also

References