Hestesletten facts for kids
Hestesletten (54°18′S 36°31′W / 54.300°S 36.517°W) is a large, flat area on South Georgia. It is a type of plain formed by glaciers, located between the Hamberg Lakes and Cumberland East Bay. This area is covered with tough, grassy plants called tussock. Hestesletten is about 3.2 kilometers (2 miles) long from northeast to southwest and 1.2 kilometers (0.75 miles) wide. It is one of the few big flat areas on the island, similar to Salisbury Plain.
Geography of Hestesletten
Junction Valley connects Echo Pass to Hestesletten, sloping down towards the plain from the west.
On the eastern side of Hestesletten, there is a low ridge called Zenker Ridge. This ridge runs southwest from Discovery Point, which is at the entrance of Moraine Fjord, all the way to Osmic Hill. Osmic Hill rises about 305 meters (1,000 feet) above the plain. It marks the northern edge of a wavy line of hills on the western side of Moraine Fjord.
Exploring and Naming the Area
The area around Hestesletten was first mapped by the Swedish Antarctic Expedition between 1901 and 1904. This expedition was led by Otto Nordenskjöld.
Both Zenker Ridge and Osmic Hill were named by the Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey (FIDS) after they made a quick map of the area in 1951. The names come from scientific terms used in biology.
History of Hestesletten
The name "Hestesletten" means "Horses' Plain" in Norwegian. This name came about because a small group of horses were brought to the area in 1905 by the South Georgia Exploration Company. These horses lived on the plain for several years.
Hestesletten also played a part in the Falklands War. On April 25, 1982, Royal Marines landed here. They then moved towards King Edward Point, where Argentine forces later surrendered on the same day.
See also
In Spanish: Hestesletten para niños
