La Ronciere Island
Encyclopedia
La-Ronciere Island
La-Ronciere Island (. Also known as Ronser Island is an island in Franz Josef Land
Franz Josef Land
Franz Josef Land, Franz Joseph Land, or Francis Joseph's Land is an archipelago located in the far north of Russia. It is found in the Arctic Ocean north of Novaya Zemlya and east of Svalbard, and is administered by Arkhangelsk Oblast. Franz Josef Land consists of 191 ice-covered islands with a...

, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

.

La Ronciere Island's area is 478 km² (185 sq mi). Its latitude is 81° N and its longitude 61° E. The highest point of the island is 431 m (1,414 ft). It is almost completely glaciarized except for two small points by the shore in the northeast and in the west.

La Ronciere Island lies north of Wilczek Land
Wilczek Land
Wilczek Land , is a large-sized island located at . It is a part of Franz Josef Land, Russia.Wilczek Land is the second largest island of the Franz Josef Archipelago. It is almost completely glaciarized except for two narrow areas along its western shores. The highest point on the island is 606...

, separated from it by an 8 km (5 mi) wide sound.

This island was named by the Austro-Hungarian North Pole Expedition
Austro-Hungarian North Pole Expedition
The Austro-Hungarian North Pole Expedition was an expedition that ran from 1872–74 and discovered Franz-Josef Land. According to Julius von Payer, one of the leaders, the journey was to find the north-eastern passage. It actually explored the area northwest of Novaya Zemlya. According to the...

 after Captain La Ronciere Le Noury, a French courier for Austro-Hungarian Emperor Franz Joseph.

In some maps La Ronciere Island appears as "Whitney Island", after American Arctic explorer Harry Whitney
Harry Whitney
Harry Whitney was an American sportsman, adventurer, and author. He traveled to northern Greenland with Robert Peary in 1908, staying over the winter with the Eskimos at Etah and Annoatok. In the spring of 1909 Whitney found himself at the center of the controversy between Frederick Cook and Peary...

. This name was given by the Ziegler-Fiala Polar Expedition
Ziegler Polar Expedition
The Ziegler polar expedition of 1903–1905 was a failed attempt to reach the North Pole. The party remained stranded north of the Arctic Circle for two years before being rescued, yet all but one of its members survived. The expedition, funded by William Ziegler and led by Anthony Fiala, departed...

, but the Austro-Hungarian explorers that discovered Franz Josef land had named this island first.

Adjacent islands

southwest of La Ronciere Island and 4 km north of Wilczek Land's northwestern cape, at 80.8716667 N 60.1172222 E, lies a small island called Ostrov Geidzh (Остров Гейдж) or Geddes Island. This barely 1 km (0.621372736649807 mi) long island was named after Scottish
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...

 polar scientist Sir Patrick Geddes
Patrick Geddes
Sir Patrick Geddes was a Scottish biologist, sociologist, philanthropist and pioneering town planner. He is known for his innovative thinking in the fields of urban planning and education....

. This same island was named Hayden Island (Остров Гайдана; Ostrov Gaydana), after pioneering American geologist Ferdinand Vandeveer Hayden
Ferdinand Vandeveer Hayden
Dr. Ferdinand Vandeveer Hayden was an American geologist noted for his pioneering surveying expeditions of the Rocky Mountains in the late 19th century. He was also a physician who served with the Union Army during the Civil War.-Early life:Ferdinand Hayden was born in Westfield, Massachusetts...

, by the Ziegler-Fiala expedition.

External links

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