The Koettlitz Glacier is one of the larger masses of flowing ice descending from the polar plateau near the northern end of the Dry Valley Region. This large glacier has many crevasses and wide, open "Barrancas". Here, we landed in one to check for seals:
The Antarctic continent near Chocolate Point: the terrain is dry and forbidding:
Looking up the frozen sound towards the Ferrar Glacier in the distant background:
Taylor Valley is one of the famous Dry Valleys. These valleys descend from the Transantarctic Mountains that are separating McMurdo Sound from the polar plateau. The valleys are mostly dry, although glaciers abound, as well as frozen lakes. This area is of particular interest to geologists, as well as microbiologists and even exobiologists, who study life in extreme environments. Lichen can be found here eeking out a living in the top layers of rocks.
Next: near Weddell World
