Darwin Sound
Encyclopedia
The Darwin Sound is an expanse of seawater which forms a westward continuation of the Beagle Channel
and links it to the Pacific Ocean
at Londonderry Island
and Stewart Island, not far from the southern tip of South America
. It thus forms a navigable link across Tierra del Fuego
between the Pacific and Atlantic Ocean
s as an alternative to going round the hazardous rocky headland of Cape Horn
.
It was given the name Darwin Sound during the Voyage of the Beagle
by HMS Beagle
's captain Robert FitzRoy
after Charles Darwin
's prompt action, with others, saved them from being marooned. To carry out their hydrographic survey
work the ship’s boats were often used at a considerable distance from the ship. In the Beagle Channel they looked at its north shore in amazement at the vast "beryl blue" glaciers on the steep mountains of the Cordillera of the Andes
, which fed down to the water and formed iceberg
s. On 29 January 1833 they had their boats drawn up on the beach about half a mile (1 km) from the ship and were dining when a huge mass of ice fell from the face of a glacier and plunged into the water with a "thundering crash". "Great rolling waves" rushed toward the shore threatening the small boats. Darwin was quick to act. He rushed down to the shore with two or three of the men and they hauled the boats to safety just as the first breaker crashed down, at considerable danger to themselves. Captain Fitzroy was impressed and next day named a nearby expanse of water Darwin Sound. Darwin felt that he had acted out of fear rather than bravado, noting in his Diary that, had they lost the boats, "how dangerous would our lot have been, surrounded... by hostile Savages & deprived of... provisions."
The highest peak to the north of the Channel was named Mount Darwin
by FitzRoy to celebrate Darwin's 25th birthday on 12 February 1834.
Beagle Channel
thumb|right|300px|Aereal view of Beagle Channel. The Chilean [[Navarino Island]] is seen in the top-right while the Argentine part of [[Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego]] is seen at the bottom-left....
and links it to the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
at Londonderry Island
Londonderry Island
Londonderry is an island in Tierra del Fuego in Chile at the western end of the Beagle Channel and Darwin Sound; the captain of HMS Beagle, Robert FitzRoy, was a descendant of the Marquis of Londonderry. Politically, the island is located in the Commune of Cabo de Hornos, which belongs to the...
and Stewart Island, not far from the southern tip of South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
. It thus forms a navigable link across Tierra del Fuego
Tierra del Fuego
Tierra del Fuego is an archipelago off the southernmost tip of the South American mainland, across the Strait of Magellan. The archipelago consists of a main island Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego divided between Chile and Argentina with an area of , and a group of smaller islands including Cape...
between the Pacific and Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
s as an alternative to going round the hazardous rocky headland of Cape Horn
Cape Horn
Cape Horn is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island...
.
The Voyage of the Beagle
The Voyage of the Beagle is a title commonly given to the book written by Charles Darwin and published in 1839 as his Journal and Remarks, bringing him considerable fame and respect...
by HMS Beagle
HMS Beagle
HMS Beagle was a Cherokee-class 10-gun brig-sloop of the Royal Navy. She was launched on 11 May 1820 from the Woolwich Dockyard on the River Thames, at a cost of £7,803. In July of that year she took part in a fleet review celebrating the coronation of King George IV of the United Kingdom in which...
's captain Robert FitzRoy
Robert FitzRoy
Vice-Admiral Robert FitzRoy RN achieved lasting fame as the captain of HMS Beagle during Charles Darwin's famous voyage, and as a pioneering meteorologist who made accurate weather forecasting a reality...
after Charles Darwin
Charles Darwin
Charles Robert Darwin FRS was an English naturalist. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestry, and proposed the scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection.He published his theory...
's prompt action, with others, saved them from being marooned. To carry out their hydrographic survey
Hydrographic survey
Hydrographic survey is the science of measurement and description of features which affect maritime navigation, marine construction, dredging, offshore oil exploration/drilling and related disciplines. Strong emphasis is placed on soundings, shorelines, tides, currents, sea floor and submerged...
work the ship’s boats were often used at a considerable distance from the ship. In the Beagle Channel they looked at its north shore in amazement at the vast "beryl blue" glaciers on the steep mountains of the Cordillera of the Andes
Andes
The Andes is the world's longest continental mountain range. It is a continual range of highlands along the western coast of South America. This range is about long, about to wide , and of an average height of about .Along its length, the Andes is split into several ranges, which are separated...
, which fed down to the water and formed iceberg
Iceberg
An iceberg is a large piece of ice from freshwater that has broken off from a snow-formed glacier or ice shelf and is floating in open water. It may subsequently become frozen into pack ice...
s. On 29 January 1833 they had their boats drawn up on the beach about half a mile (1 km) from the ship and were dining when a huge mass of ice fell from the face of a glacier and plunged into the water with a "thundering crash". "Great rolling waves" rushed toward the shore threatening the small boats. Darwin was quick to act. He rushed down to the shore with two or three of the men and they hauled the boats to safety just as the first breaker crashed down, at considerable danger to themselves. Captain Fitzroy was impressed and next day named a nearby expanse of water Darwin Sound. Darwin felt that he had acted out of fear rather than bravado, noting in his Diary that, had they lost the boats, "how dangerous would our lot have been, surrounded... by hostile Savages & deprived of... provisions."
The highest peak to the north of the Channel was named Mount Darwin
Mount Darwin (Andes)
Mount Darwin, the highest peak in Tierra del Fuego at forms part of the Cordillera of the Andes, South America, just to the north of the Beagle Channel. It is formed of crystalline schists and has massive glaciers down its steep southern slopes....
by FitzRoy to celebrate Darwin's 25th birthday on 12 February 1834.