Empereur Island (Empereur, Ile de l')
Empereur Island is a rocky island 1 nmi north of Cape Margerie, lying immediately north of Breton Island in the entrance to Port Martin. It was photographed from the air by U.S. Navy Operation Highjump, 1946–47. It was charted by the French Antarctic Expedition under Andre-Frank Liotard, 1949–51, and so named because the first emperor penguin captured by the expedition was taken on this island.
A 283 ha site, including Empereur Island and Île des Manchots, Mont du Sphinx and Mont du Sabbat on the eastern coast of Cape Margerie, as well as Pointe de Cézembre and the intervening sea, has been designated an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because it supports about 35,000 breeding pairs of Adélie penguinss, estimated from 2011 satellite imagery.
A 283 ha site, including Empereur Island and Île des Manchots, Mont du Sphinx and Mont du Sabbat on the eastern coast of Cape Margerie, as well as Pointe de Cézembre and the intervening sea, has been designated an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because it supports about 35,000 breeding pairs of Adélie penguinss, estimated from 2011 satellite imagery.
Map - Empereur Island (Empereur, Ile de l')
Map
Country - Antarctica
Antarctica is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest continent, being about 40% larger than Europe, and has an area of 14200000 km2. Most of Antarctica is covered by the Antarctic ice sheet, with an average thickness of 1.9 km.
Antarctica is, on average, the coldest, driest, and windiest of the continents, and it has the highest average elevation. It is mainly a polar desert, with annual precipitation of over 200 mm along the coast and far less inland. About 70% of the world's freshwater reserves are frozen in Antarctica, which, if melted, would raise global sea levels by almost 60 m. Antarctica holds the record for the lowest measured temperature on Earth, −89.2 C. The coastal regions can reach temperatures over 10 C in summer. Native species of animals include mites, nematodes, penguins, seals and tardigrades. Where vegetation occurs, it is mostly in the form of lichen or moss.
Antarctica is, on average, the coldest, driest, and windiest of the continents, and it has the highest average elevation. It is mainly a polar desert, with annual precipitation of over 200 mm along the coast and far less inland. About 70% of the world's freshwater reserves are frozen in Antarctica, which, if melted, would raise global sea levels by almost 60 m. Antarctica holds the record for the lowest measured temperature on Earth, −89.2 C. The coastal regions can reach temperatures over 10 C in summer. Native species of animals include mites, nematodes, penguins, seals and tardigrades. Where vegetation occurs, it is mostly in the form of lichen or moss.