Haskell Strait refers to the ocean passage in southern McMurdo Sound, running between Cape Armitage, Ross Island and Cape Spencer-Smith, White Island, Antarctica.[1] Oceanographically, it separates McMurdo Sound from the ocean basin (ice shelf cavity) beneath the Ross Ice Shelf. The Strait itself is around 25 km wide and in places over 900 m deep.[2] Currents of nearly half a knot have been measured in the Strait, although typical flows are lower.[3] It is mostly covered by the ice of the McMurdo Ice Shelf and fast ice in southern McMurdo Sound. On rare occasions sea-ice breakout exposes the north-west corner of the Strait which becomes navigable and vessels can actually moor off Scott Base.
Name[edit]
It is named after the New Zealand polar scientist Dr Timothy G. Haskell in 2009. It is unclear why it was not named previously as a strait. Possibly, this was because it is typically ice-covered and is dominated by the barrier (the McMurdo Ice Shelf). However, it dwarfs the other named ice-covered straits in the area - for example Moraine and White Straits which separate Minna Bluff from Black Island and White from Black Islands, respectively.
History[edit]
The Strait was the scene of great drama during the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration. Apsley Cherry-Garrard describes Scott parties’ attempts to get themselves and their ponies off disintegrating sea ice, past patrolling orca, and onto the Barrier.[4] Scott Base, the New Zealand scientific research station, was established during the International Geophysical Year 1957 and overlooks Haskell Strait.
Oceanography[edit]
As it is one of the southernmost large Straits in the world, it is heavily influenced by the Earth's rotation. It is also the western gateway to the Ross Ice Shelf cavity – an enormous, essentially unknown, body of water. The cavity is a major source of supercooled water, i.e. water chilled at great depths under the ice shelf which is then released to find itself colder than the freezing temperature.[5] Such water influences sea ice growth which in turn affects climate processes at a global scale.[6]
Notes[edit]
- ^ "Haskell Strait | Land Information New Zealand (LINZ) - Toitū te whenua". Archived from the original on 2013-02-14. Retrieved 2012-09-05.
- ^ Haskell Strait, The Last Great Strait? Antarctic, 28, 10-11.
- ^ Robinson, N. J.; Williams, M. J. M.; Barrett, P. J.; Pyne, A. R. (2010-03-01). "Observations of flow and ice-ocean interaction beneath the McMurdo Ice Shelf, Antarctica". Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans. 115 (C3): C03025. Bibcode:2010JGRC..115.3025R. doi:10.1029/2008JC005255. ISSN 2156-2202.
- ^ Cherry-Garrard, Apsley (1989) [1922]. The Worst Journey in the World. London: Carroll & Graf. ISBN 978-0-88184-478-8. OCLC 20136739
- ^ Stevens, C. L., Robinson, N. J., Williams, M. J. M., and Haskell, T. G.: Observations of turbulence beneath sea ice in southern McMurdo Sound, Antarctica, Ocean Sci., 5, 435-445, 2009.. http://www.ocean-sci.net/5/435/2009/os-5-435-2009.pdf
- ^ Mahoney, Andrew R.; Gough, Alexander J.; Langhorne, Patricia J.; Robinson, Natalie J.; Stevens, Craig L.; Williams, Michael M. J.; Haskell, Timothy G. (2011-11-01). "The seasonal appearance of ice shelf water in coastal Antarctica and its effect on sea ice growth". Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans. 116 (C11): C11032. Bibcode:2011JGRC..11611032M. doi:10.1029/2011JC007060. ISSN 2156-2202.