The Random Hills () are a group of rugged hills in

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 ...

, Antarctica. They are bounded on the west by

Campbell Glacier Campbell Glacier () is a glacier, about long, originating near the south end of Mesa Range and draining southeast between the Deep Freeze Range and Mount Melbourne to discharge into north Terra Nova Bay in Victoria Land, Antarctica. Location ...

and on the east by Tinker Glacier and

Wood Bay Wood Bay () is a large bay which is bounded by Cape Johnson and Aviator Glacier Tongue on the north, and Cape Washington on the south, along the coast of Victoria Land, Antarctica. It was discovered in 1841 by Captain James Clark Ross, Royal Navy ...

. They are centered about ) north-northwest of

Mount Melbourne Mount Melbourne is a ice-covered stratovolcano in Victoria Land, Antarctica, between Wood Bay and Terra Nova Bay. It is an elongated mountain with a summit caldera filled with ice with numerous parasitic vents; a volcanic field surrounds th ...

Exploration and name

The Random Hills were named by the Southern Party of the

New Zealand Geological Survey Antarctic Expedition The New Zealand Geological Survey Antarctic Expedition (NZGSAE) describes a series of scientific explorations of the continent Antarctica. The expeditions were notably active throughout the 1950s and 1960s. Features named by the expeditions 19 ...

(NZGSAE), 1966–67, because of the random orientation of the ridges which comprise the feature.

Geology

The Random Hills are part of the Melbourne Volcanic Province of the

McMurdo Volcanic Group The McMurdo Volcanic Group is a large group of Cenozoic volcanic rocks in the western Ross Sea and central Transantarctic Mountains areas of Antarctica. It is one of the largest provinces of alkaline volcanism in the world, having formed as a resu ...

. K–Ar or Rb–Sr dating has given ages of 12.63 ± 0.17 million years and 12.43 ± 0.16 million years for Random Hills

hawaiite Hawaiite is an olivine basalt with a composition between alkali basalt and mugearite. It was first used as a name for some lavas found on the island of Hawaii. It occurs during the later stages of volcanic activity on oceanic islands such as Ha ...

Location

The Random Hills lie between the Tinker Glacier Tongue to the east, Baker Rocks on the

peninsula to the south, and Bier Point and the

to the west. The Burns Glacier separates the hills from Pinckard Table to the east. The Clausnitzer Glacier flows eastward through the hills to join the Tinker Glacier.

Features

Features and nearby features include:

Harrow Peaks

. A group of rugged peaks in the east part of Random Hills, bounded on the north by Clausnitzer Glacier and on the east by Tinker Glacier, overlooking the northwest extremity of Wood Bay. Mapped by the

United States Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), founded as the Geological Survey, is an agency of the U.S. Department of the Interior whose work spans the disciplines of biology, geography, geology, and hydrology. The agency was founded on Mar ...

(USGS) from surveys and United States Navy air photos, 1955-63. 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) for Geoffrey N. Harrow, biologist at McMurdo Station, 1965-66 season.

Mount McGee

. A mountain, high, rising from a ridge at the north side of Clausnitzer Glacier in the Random Hills. Mapped by USGS from surveys and United States Navy air photos, 1955-63. Named by US-ACAN for Lawrence E. McGee, geologist 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 ...

, 1965-66 season.

Baker Rocks

. A spur-like rock exposure lying west of

and north of

. Mapped by USGS from surveys and United States Navy air photos, 1955-63. Named by the US-ACAN after Billy-Ace Baker, radioman, McMurdo Station winter party in 1963, 1967, 1971, and 1975; summer seasons, 1976-1980.

Bier Point

. A projecting point on the east side of Campbell Glacier, northeast of

Mount Queensland The Deep Freeze Range () is a rugged mountain range, over long and about wide, rising between Priestley and Campbell Glaciers in Victoria Land, Antarctica, and extending from the edge of the polar plateau to Terra Nova Bay. It is southwest of ...

. Mapped by USGS from surveys and United States Navy air photos, 1955-63. Named by US-ACAN for Jeffrey W. Bier, biologist, McMurdo Station winter party, 1966.

Pinckard Table

. An ice-covered tableland, long and wide, rising between Styx Glacier and Burns Glacier. Mapped by USGS from surveys and United States Navy air photos, 1955-63. Named by US-ACAN for William Pinckard, biologist at McMurdo Station, 1965-66 season.

References

Sources

* * {{Authority control Hills of Victoria Land Borchgrevink Coast Volcanoes of Victoria Land Miocene volcanoes