Sail Rock (South Shetland Islands) Explained

Sail Rock is the remaining uppermost part of a submerged volcanic edifice lying 7 nautical miles (13 km) southwest of Deception Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica. It is 20 m long in southwest-northeast direction, 12 m wide and 30 m high. From a distance, the rock is reported to resemble a ship under sail, but at close range it is more like a house with a gable roof. The feature's name, which dates back to at least 1822, was probably given by sealers.

Location

The rock is located at -63.049°N -60.959°W.

Maps

• Chart of South Shetland including Coronation Island, &c. from the exploration of the sloop Dove in the years 1821 and 1822 by George Powell Commander of the same. Scale ca. 1:200000. London: Laurie, 1822
• South Shetland Islands: Deception Island. Scale 1:50000 map. Insets: Sail Rock 1:10000. UK Antarctic Place-names Committee, 2010
• Antarctic Digital Database (ADD). Scale 1:250000 topographic map of Antarctica. Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR). Since 1993, regularly updated

References

• Sail Rock. SCAR Composite Antarctic Gazetteer
• S. Kraus, A. Kurbatov and M. Yates. Geochemical signatures of tephras from Quaternary Antarctic Peninsula volcanoes. Andean Geology 40 (2013) 1. pp. 1–40