Земля Александры (Russian) | |
|---|---|
 Location of Alexandra Land in the Franz Josef Archipelago | |
  Alexandra Land | |
| Geography | |
| Location | Arctic |
| Coordinates | 80°38′02″N46°35′02″E / 80.6339°N 46.5839°E /80.6339; 46.5839 |
| Archipelago | Franz Josef Land |
| Area | 1,050 km2 (410 sq mi) |
| Length | 70 km (43 mi) |
| Width | 30 km (19 mi) |
| Highest elevation | 382 m (1253 ft) |
| Highest point | Kupol Lunny |
| Administration | |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 5 (2007) |
Alexandra Land (Russian:Земля Александры,romanized: Zemlya Aleksandry) is a largeisland located inFranz Josef Land,Arkhangelsk Oblast,Russia. Not counting detached and far-lyingVictoria Island, it is the westernmost island of Franz Josef Land. It is the site of a Russian military base that was reopened in 2017.
The highest point of the island, 382 m (1,253 ft), is the summit ofKupol Lunny (Купол Лунный) "Dome of the Moon", a largeice dome covering most of the western part of the island.[1] At the western end of the western glaciated area lies theNordenskiöld Glacier;[2] other glaciers in the island are theWorcester Glacier (HMS Worcester Glacier)[3] and thePayer Glacier. The northern part of the island isunglacierized and its eastern end forms a peninsula stretching southwards, the Polyarnykh Letchikov Peninsula.[4] This peninsula is covered byKupol Kropotkina (Купол Кропоткина), a smaller ice dome.[5] There are three large lakes on the island, including theUtinoye Lake (Duck Lake) and theLedyanoye Lake (Ice Lake).
Dezhnev Bay(Zaliv Dezhneva) lies between the western part of the island and the Polyarnykh Letchikov Peninsula. Cape Thomas(Mys Tomasa) is the southernmostheadland of the peninsula. Cambridge Channel(Proliv Kambritch) is a wide sound between Alexandra Land andZemlya Georga.
At the southern end this island has two capes pointing southwestwards in its southernmost coast: Cape Lofley and Cape Ludlow.Cape Mary Harmsworth, the cape pointing westwards is the westernmost point of the Franz Josef Archipelago proper.
The English explorerBenjamin Leigh Smith, sighted Alexandra Land in 1880, but did not land. He named the area forAlexandra, thenPrincess of Wales.[6]An alternative account states that the name "Alexandra Land" commemoratesGrand Duchess Alexandra Pavlovna of Russia (1783–1801), who became Archduchess ofAustria in 1799 upon her marriage toArchduke Joseph of Austria,Palatine of Hungary (1776-1847).[citation needed]
TheJackson–Harmsworth expedition led byFrederick Jackson was the first to set foot on Alexandra Land in 1895. Cape Mary Harmsworth was named after main sponsorAlfred Harmsworth's wife Mary. In 1897, Jackson established that the land discovered by Leigh Smith was in fact composed of two separate islands. He named the southeastern islandPrince George Land.[7]
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Russian navigatorValerian Albanov of theSvyataya Anna reached Cape Mary Harmsworth in Alexandra Land in 1914 after his ordeal on the polar ice.
DuringWorld War II, the Germans established an ill-fated meteorological station on the island, calledSchatzgräber ("Treasure Hunter"). Most of the members were stricken withtrichinosis after eating raw polar bear meat. The survivors were removed and the project abandoned.[8][9]
During the Cold War it was the site of the 31st Independent Radio-Technical Company (Military Unit Number 03184 ([1])), part of the10th Independent Air Defence Army of theSoviet Air Defence Forces.[10]
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Alexandra Land is home toNagurskoye military base, Russia's northernmost military base, built in the 1950s.
Nagurskoye is a Russian base located on the island at80°49′N47°25′E / 80.817°N 47.417°E /80.817; 47.417, on the site of the former meteorological station. It was named after pioneer pilotJan Nagórski (1888–1976) and served as one of the most important meteorological stations in the archipelago during theCold War. This base has a 1,500 m (4,900 ft) snow runway. An AntonovAn-72 cargo aircraft crashed while landing at Nagurskoye on 23 December 1996.
A major new base, named the "Arctic Trefoil"(Arkticheskiy trilistnik) for its three-lobed structure, was constructed at Nagurskoye. It can house 150 soldiers for 18 months and has an area of 14,000 square metres (150,000 sq ft).[11]
Thepolar bear,Ursus maritimus, is found on Alexandra Land. The polar bear population in this region, as in other Arctic subregions, is genetically distinct from other polar bearsubpopulations in differing Arctic subregions.[12]
[...] discovery is generally credited to Benjamin Leigh Smith in 1880, who named it for Princess Alexandra, wife of Edward, Prince of Wales.
Media related toAlexandra Land at Wikimedia Commons