Mount Odin () is the most prominent peak, though not the highest, in the

Asgard Range The Asgard Range () is a mountain range in Victoria Land, Antarctica. It divides Wright Valley from Taylor Glacier and Taylor Valley. It is south of the Olympus Range and north of the Quartermain Mountains and the Kukri Hills. Name The Asga ...

, of

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. It rises over just south of

Lake Vanda Lake Vanda is a lake in Wright Valley, Victoria Land, Ross Dependency, Antarctica. The lake is long and has a maximum depth of . On its shore, New Zealand maintained Vanda Station from 1968 to 1995. At depths of greater than approximately 50 me ...

. It was named by the

Victoria University of Wellington Antarctic Expedition The Antarctic Research Centre (ARC) is part of the School of Geography, Environment and Earth Sciences at Victoria University of Wellington. Its mission is to research " Antarctic climate history and processes, and their influence on the global cl ...

(VUWAE) (1958–59) for the Norse god

Odin Odin (; from ) is a widely revered god in Norse mythology and Germanic paganism. Most surviving information on Odin comes from Norse mythology, but he figures prominently in the recorded history of Northern Europe. This includes the Roman Em ...

Location

Mount Odin lies to the south of

in the

Wright Valley The Wright Valley () is a large east–west trending valley, formerly occupied by a glacier but now ice free except for Wright Upper Glacier at its head and Wright Lower Glacier at its mouth, in Victoria Land, Antarctica. It was named by the VU ...

. The Odin Valley is to its east, and Obelisk Mountain to its south. Junction Knob is to the southwest. A study of soil microbiology from sites in the Odin valley down to the Onyx River in the Wright Valley, published in 1972, showed that despite the cold and dry conditions, there was active in-situ microbial life in all the soils examined.

Features

Features in the region around the mountain include Odin Valley, Tiw Valley, Mime Glacier, Siegfried Peak, Siegmund Peak, Heimdall Glacier, Mount Beowulf, Beowulf Glacier,, Mount Valhalla,

Valhalla Glacier The Wright Valley () is a large east–west trending valley, formerly occupied by a glacier but now ice free except for Wright Upper Glacier at its head and Wright Lower Glacier at its mouth, in Victoria Land, Antarctica. It was named by the VUWA ...

, Obelisk Mountain, Hind Turret, Junction Knob, Odin Glacier, Alberich Glacier,

Sykes Glacier The Wright Valley () is a large east–west trending valley, formerly occupied by a glacier but now ice free except for Wright Upper Glacier at its head and Wright Lower Glacier at its mouth, in Victoria Land, Antarctica. It was named by the VUWA ...

Donner Valley The Wright Valley () is a large east–west trending valley, formerly occupied by a glacier but now ice free except for Wright Upper Glacier at its head and Wright Lower Glacier at its mouth, in Victoria Land, Antarctica. It was named by the VUWA ...

and Odin Glacier.

Odin Valley

. An ice free valley immediately east of Mount Odin. Named by

New Zealand Antarctic Place-Names Committee New Zealand Antarctic Place-Names Committee (NZ-APC) is an adjudicating committee established to authorize the naming of features in the Ross Dependency on the Antarctic continent. It is composed of the members of the New Zealand Geographic Board pl ...

(NZ-APC) in association with Mount Odin.

Tiw Valley

. A valley lying next eastward of Odin Valley. The feature is one in a group in this range named from Norse mythology, Tiw being the god of rules and regulations in war and peace. The name was suggested 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 consultation with the NZ-APC.

Mime Glacier

. A small glacier at the south (upper) end of Tiw Valley. The name is one in a group given by NZ-APC from Norse mythology. In Der Ring des Nibelungen, Mime is the smith who aids Siegfried to win the ring and is slain by the hero for his treachery.

Siegfried Peak

. Peak that forms a saddle with Siegmund Peak immediately southward, standing at the east side of the entrance to Odin Valley in the Asgard Range. The peak is one in a group of features in the area named mainly from Norse mythology by NZ-APC. Siegfried was the hero of various German legends, particularly of the Nibelungenlied.

Siegmund Peak

. The peak forms a saddle with Siegfried Peak just northward, located at the east side of the entrance to Odin Valley. The name was applied by NZ-APC after Siegmund, the father of the German legend hero Siegfried in Der Ring des Nibelungen.

Mount Beowulf

. A peak rising to about high at the southeast side of Mime Glacier. 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) in 1962 from United States Navy aerial photographs taken 1947-59. Named by the NZ-APC in 1983 after the hero of the Old English epic poem.

Beowulf Glacier

. A small north-flowing glacier located between Mime Glacier and the head of Rhone Glacier in the Asgard Range. Named in 1983 by the NZ-APC from association with Mount Beowulf which stands at the head of this glacier.

Mount Valhalla

. A peak standing at the west flank of Valhalla Glacier from where it overlooks the south side of Wright Valley. The name is one in a group in the range derived from Norse mythology, Valhalla being the great hall where Odin receives and feasts the souls of heroes who have fallen bravely in battle. The name was suggested by US-ACAN in consultation with NZ-APC.

Obelisk Mountain

. A mountain, about high, between

Catspaw Glacier The Taylor Glacier () is a glacier in Antarctica about long, flowing from the plateau of Victoria Land into the western end of Taylor Valley, north of the Kukri Hills. It flows to the south of the Asgard Range. The middle part of the glacier is ...

and Mount Odin. Given this descriptive name by the Western Journey Party, led by Taylor, of the BrAE, 1910-13.

Hind Turret

. A descriptive name that is suggestive of the appearance and position of this peak at the south (hind) side of Obelisk Mountain. The name was recommended by the US-ACAN in consultation with the NZ-APC.

Veli Peak

. A peak just east of Idun Peak and south of Brunhilde Peak. The precise origin of "Veli," applied by NZ-APC, is not known.

Brunhilde Peak

. A rock peak between the upper part of

and

. Named by NZ-APC after Brunhilde, one in a group of names in the range derived from Norse mythology. In the

Nibelungenlied The (, or ; or ), translated as ''The Song of the Nibelungs'', is an epic poetry, epic poem written around 1200 in Middle High German. Its anonymous poet was likely from the region of Passau. The is based on an oral tradition of Germanic hero ...

, Brunhilde is a young and stalwart queen whom Siegfried, by magic, wins and later tames for Gunther.

Idun Peak

. A small peak between

Mount Thundergut The Inland Forts () are a line of peaks extending between Northwest Mountain and Saint Pauls Mountain, in the Asgard Range of Victoria Land, Antarctica. The peaks were discovered by Ervon r. Koenig and named by the British National Antarctic Exp ...

and Veli Peak. The name, recommended by US-ACAN in consultation with NZAPC, is one in a group of names in Asgard Range derived from Norse mythology Idun being a goddess.

Colosseum Cliff

. An impressive banded cliff located between

and the doleritic rock of

Plane Table A plane table (plain table prior to 1830) is a device used in surveying, site mapping, exploration mapping, coastal navigation mapping, and related disciplines to provide a solid and level surface on which to make field drawings, charts and maps. ...

. The descriptive name was applied by the NZ-APC.

Junction Knob

. A descriptive name given by the NZ-APC to a small but distinctive peak at the junction of Odin Glacier and Alberich Glacier névé areas.

Odin Glacier

. A small glacier that drains the west slopes of Mount Odin. Named by NZ-APC in association with Mount Odin.

Alberich Glacier

. A small glacier that drains west from Junction Knob toward the east flank of

. It is one in a group of features in the range named by NZ-APC mainly from Norse mythology. In German legend, Alberich is the all-powerful king of the dwarfs and chief of the Nibelungen.

References

Sources

* * * {{Include-USGov , agency=United States Geological Survey

McMurdo Dry Valleys