Daniell Peninsula facts for kids

Daniell Peninsula (72°50′S 169°35′E) is the large peninsula between Cape Daniell and Cape Jones on the coast of Victoria Land. It is partly separated from the Victory Mountains by Whitehall Glacier, which is afloat in its lower reaches, but is joined to these mountains by the higher land in the vicinity of Mount Prior. It was named by the New Zealand Geological Survey Antarctic Expedition, 1957–58, after Cape Daniell, and by analogy with the Adare and Hallett peninsulas.

Geology

The peninsula is an elongated basalt dome similar to the Adare and Hallett peninsulas. It consists of at least four overlapping shield volcanoes that form part of the Hallett Volcanic Province of the McMurdo Volcanic Group. Mount Brewster forms the central portion of the Daniell Peninsula and rises to an elevation of 2,026 m (6,647 ft), forming the highest point on the peninsula. K–Ar or Rb–Sr dating has given an age of 12.4 ± 0.2 million years for Mount Brewster pantelleritic trachyte and an age of 6.9 ± 0.3 million years for Mount Brewster hawaiite lava.

A second shield volcano forming the southern end of the peninsula is deeply dissected by the Mandible Cirque. It contains the small satellite vent of Tousled Peak and the prominent ice-draped cone-like peak of Mount Lubbock. A dike cutting Mandible Cirque comenditic trachyte has given an age of 9.5 ± 0.1 million years.

The Cape Daniell shield volcano at the northern end of the Daniell Peninsula has an elevation of 1,910 m (6,270 ft), with its highest point being an unnamed peak. The summit area contains a flat region several kilometres wide that might be a small ice-filled caldera. Cape Daniell trachyte lava has an age of 5.8 ± 0.1 million years while Cape Daniell benmoreite lava has an age of 5.6 ± 0.5 million years.