Français Rocks (Français, punta)
The Français Rocks are a group of fringing rocks lying off the northeast coast of D'Urville Island, in the Joinville Island group. The name "Pointe des Français" (point of the French) was given by Captain Jules Dumont d'Urville, of the French Antarctic Expedition, 1837–40, to the northeast point of the island which at that time was believed to be continuous with Joinville Island. Surveys by the Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey (1952–54) and aerial photographs by the Falkland Islands and Dependencies Aerial Survey Expedition (1956–57) have not revealed a definable point hereabout. For the sake of historical continuity in the area, the UK Antarctic Place-Names Committee (1978) applied the name Français Rocks to these fringing rocks.
Map - Français Rocks (Français, punta)
Map
Country - Antarctica
Antarctica is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest continent, being about 40% larger than Europe, and has an area of 14200000 km2. Most of Antarctica is covered by the Antarctic ice sheet, with an average thickness of 1.9 km.
Antarctica is, on average, the coldest, driest, and windiest of the continents, and it has the highest average elevation. It is mainly a polar desert, with annual precipitation of over 200 mm along the coast and far less inland. About 70% of the world's freshwater reserves are frozen in Antarctica, which, if melted, would raise global sea levels by almost 60 m. Antarctica holds the record for the lowest measured temperature on Earth, −89.2 C. The coastal regions can reach temperatures over 10 C in summer. Native species of animals include mites, nematodes, penguins, seals and tardigrades. Where vegetation occurs, it is mostly in the form of lichen or moss.
Antarctica is, on average, the coldest, driest, and windiest of the continents, and it has the highest average elevation. It is mainly a polar desert, with annual precipitation of over 200 mm along the coast and far less inland. About 70% of the world's freshwater reserves are frozen in Antarctica, which, if melted, would raise global sea levels by almost 60 m. Antarctica holds the record for the lowest measured temperature on Earth, −89.2 C. The coastal regions can reach temperatures over 10 C in summer. Native species of animals include mites, nematodes, penguins, seals and tardigrades. Where vegetation occurs, it is mostly in the form of lichen or moss.