Abbot Ice Shelf facts for kids
The Abbot Ice Shelf is an ice shelf 250 mi (400 km) long and 40 mi (60 km) wide, bordering Eights Coast from Cape Waite to Pfrogner Point in Antarctica. Thurston Island lies along the northern edge of the western half of this ice shelf; other sizable islands (Sherman, Carpenter, Dustin, Johnson, McNamara, Farwell and Dendtler) lie partly or wholly within this shelf.
The ice shelf was sighted by members of U.S. Antarctic Service (USAS) in flights from the ship Bear, in February 1940, and its western portion was delineated from air photos taken by U.S. Navy (USN) Operation Highjump, 1946–47. The full extent was mapped by USGS from USN air photos of 1966. Named by US-ACAN for Rear Admiral James Lloyd Abbot, Jr., Commanding Officer, U.S. Naval Support Force, Antarctica, February 1967 to June 1969.
