Penguin Point (Coronation Island)

Penguin Point (60°31′00″S 45°56′00″W) is a point which forms the northwestern extremity of Coronation Island in the South Orkney Islands of Antarctica.[1]

Nearby formations

Several named rock formations are located offshore just west of Penguin Point. The Melsom Rocks are 7 nautical miles (13 km) offshore.[2] 2 nautical miles (4 km) south are the Despair Rocks, 7.5 nautical miles (14 km) west-southwest of Penguin Point.[3] 2 nautical miles (4 km) southwest of the Despair Rocks is Lay-brother Rock, which is 7 nautical miles (13 km) northwest of the west end of Coronation Island.[4]

Penguin Point and its nearby rocks were primarily discovered in early December of 1821 by Captain George Powell, a British sealer in the sloop Dove, and Captain Nathaniel Palmer, an American sealer in the sloop James Monroe.[2][3] Penguin Point was named by Powell because of the number of penguins which were on this point.[1] The Melsom Rocks were named for Captain H.G. Melsom, manager of the Thule Whaling Company, by Captain Petter Sorlle, who conducted a running survey of the South Orkney Islands in 1912–13.[2] The exception is Lay-brother Rock, which was charted and named by Discovery Investigations personnel on the Discovery II in 1933.[4]

References

1. "Penguin Point". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. Retrieved 2018-08-20.
2. "Melsom Rocks". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. Retrieved 2018-08-20.
3. "Despair Rocks". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. Retrieved 2018-08-20.
4. "Lay-brother Rock". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. Retrieved 2018-08-20.

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Geological Survey.