Ross Island is a volcanic island in Antarctica, lying on the eastern side of McMurdo Sound and extending roughly 80 kilometres from Cape Bird in the north to Cape Armitage in the south. The island sits within Ross Dependency, an area claimed by New Zealand but held in abeyance under the Antarctic Treaty System of 1961.
The island is dominated by three volcanic peaks: Mount Erebus, an active volcano rising to 3,795 metres near the centre; the extinct Mount Terror at 3,230 metres to the east; and Mount Bird at 1,765 metres in the north. Though technically an island, Ross Island remains effectively connected to the Antarctic mainland by permanent glacial ice on its southern and eastern flanks. The United States established McMurdo Station here in the mid-1950s, now Antarctica’s largest settlement, alongside New Zealand’s Scott Base. The island also preserves historic exploration huts at Cape Royds, Cape Evans and Hut Point. Its southernmost harbour, kept open seasonally by icebreakers, serves as a critical logistics hub for scientific operations across the continent.
Ross Island features in Episode: Antarctic expeditions and a hidden eighth continent, with Bruce Luyendyk.
