Patton Glacier is a broad tributary glacier

Glacier

A glacier is a large persistent body of ice that forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. At least 0.1 km² in area and 50 m thick, but often much larger, a glacier slowly deforms and flows due to stresses induced by its weight...

 in the Sentinel Range

Sentinel Range

The Sentinel Range is a major mountain range situated northward of Minnesota Glacier and forming the northern half of the Ellsworth Mountains in Antarctica. The range trends NNW-SSE for about and is 24 to 48 km wide...

, Ellsworth Mountains

Ellsworth Mountains

The Ellsworth Mountains are the highest mountain ranges in Antarctica, forming a long and wide chain of mountains in a north to south configuration on the western margin of the Ronne Ice Shelf. They are bisected by Minnesota Glacier to form the northern Sentinel Range and the southern Heritage...

. It drains the east slope of the main ridge between Mounts Ostenso and Tyree and flows east to enter Ellen Glacier

Ellen Glacier

The Ellen Glacier is an Antarctic glacier in central Sentinel Range, Ellsworth Mountains, draining the eastern slopes of Mount Anderson and Long Gables and flowing generally SE for 35 km to Barnes Ridge, where it leaves the range and enters the south flowing Rutford Ice Stream.First mapped by...

. First mapped by United States Geological Survey

United States Geological Survey

The United States Geological Survey is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and the natural hazards that threaten it. The organization has four major science disciplines, concerning biology,...

 (USGS) from surveys and U.S. Navy air photos, 1957-59. Named by Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names

Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names

The Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names is an advisory committee of the United States Board on Geographic Names responsible for recommending names for features in Antarctica...

 (US-ACAN) for Sgt. Richard J. Patton, United States Air Force

United States Air Force

The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...

 (USAF), first ever to parachute land at the South Pole

South Pole

The South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole or Terrestrial South Pole, is one of the two points where the Earth's axis of rotation intersects its surface. It is the southernmost point on the surface of the Earth and lies on the opposite side of the Earth from the North Pole...

, November 26, 1956. He gave valuable assistance on the ground in directing the air drops from Globemaster aircraft, used in transporting supplies to establish the South Pole Station.