This mountainous area was named after Danish politicianThorvald Stauning (1873–1942) who had helped to finance expeditions to east Greenland planned and carried out by Danish explorers.[3]
The Stauning Alps had been partly mapped earlier and namedRink Bjerge byLauge Koch’s 1926–27 expeditions, being referred to as a "wild and jagged range of mountains." The range thus described obviously corresponded to the eastern end of the Stauning Alps and the adjacentWerner Range, but the name was not approved owing to the lack of detailed maps. Finally the range was thoroughly surveyed and mapped in 1932 by Koch during aerial surveys made during the1931–34 Three-year Expedition to East Greenland.[3]
There is almost full documentation of climbing in the Stauning Alps by the successive expeditions having visited the mountain system. Most of the available climbing reports have either been published or deposited in the archives of theDanish Polar Center (DPC), theRoyal Geographical Society of London (RGS) or theBritish Mountaineering Council (BMC).[3]
Dansketinden, the highest point of the Stauning Alps was first climbed bySwiss mountaineers John Haller (1927–1984), Wolfgang Diehl (1908–1990) and Fritz Schwarzenbach on 5 August 1954.[4] The second ascent was made by a 1964 Italian expedition led byGuido Monzino (1928 – 1988).[3]
The range is very rugged with numerous high rocky peaks and activeglaciers in almost all valleys. It is made up ofgranite, harder in the northern than in the southern subranges. Therefore, the mountains in the north of the Stauning Alps are generally morecraggy, while those in the south are moreeroded and have a relatively smoother appearance.[5]
The whole area of this vast range system is an uninhabited, desolate mountainous expanse. The nearest settlement isIttoqqortoormiit and the nearest airfields areNerlerit Inaat Airport atConstable Point to the east andMestersvig to the north.[6] Access to the range requires a special permit.[7]
The Stauning Alps have a big concentration of mountains higher than 2,700 metres (8,860 ft). The highest point isDansketinden (2,842 m). Other noteworthy peaks[3] are:
Practically all the valleys in the Stauning Alps are filled by activeglaciers that mostly flow towards the North, East or South. Generally those glaciers flowing towards the west are steep and have dangerousicefalls with deepcrevasses.[5]
Some of the glaciers in the range system are very large, such as theSpaerre Glacier(Spærregletscher) andSefstrøm Glacier to the west, theSkjoldungebrae to the north and theBersaerkerbrae(Bersærkerbræ) to the east.[2] Other important glaciers in the Stauning Alps are:
The Stauning Alps lie in the highArctic zone.Polar climate prevails in the area of the range, theaverage annual temperature in the area being -16 °C . The warmest month is July when the average temperature rises to -2 °C and the coldest is January with -21 °C.[10]
^Haller, J. 1958:Der ‘Zentrale Metamorphe Komplex’ von NE-Grönland. Part 2.Die geologische Karte der Staunings Alper und des Forsblads Fjordes. Meddelelser om Grønland 154(3), 153 pp.