Melanita Island facts for kids
 Melanita Island
Location in Antarctica
Melanita Island
Location in Antarctic Peninsula
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| Geography | |
|---|---|
| Location | Antarctica |
| Coordinates | 63°50′27″S 60°58′21″W / 63.84083°S 60.97250°W |
| Archipelago | Palmer Archipelago |
| Length | 780 m (2,560 ft) |
| Width | 400 m (1,300 ft) |
| Administration | |
| Administered under the Antarctic Treaty System | |
| Demographics | |
| Population | uninhabited |
Melanita Island (which is ostrov Melanita in Bulgarian) is a rocky island located near Antarctica. It is about 780 meters (2,560 feet) long and 400 meters (1,310 feet) wide. This island is part of the Palmer Archipelago, a group of islands off the coast of the Antarctic Peninsula.
Where is Melanita Island?
Melanita Island is found in a very cold part of the world: Antarctica. It is located at coordinates 63°50′27″S 60°58′21″W.
To help you imagine its spot, it's:
- About 270 meters northeast of Spert Island.
- Around 3 kilometers northwest of Bulnes Point.
- About 6.15 kilometers west-southwest of Romero Point.
British explorers mapped this area in 1978, helping us know its exact location.
How did Melanita Island get its name?
Melanita Island is named after a special ship called the Melanita. This ship was an ocean fishing trawler, which is a type of boat used for fishing. It belonged to a Bulgarian company named Ocean Fisheries – Burgas.
The Melanita and other ships from this company sailed and fished in the waters around South Georgia, Kerguelen, the South Orkney Islands, the South Shetland Islands, and the Antarctic Peninsula. They did this from the 1970s until the early 1990s.
Fishermen from Bulgaria, along with those from the Soviet Union, Poland, and East Germany, were among the first to start modern fishing in the Antarctic region. Naming the island after the ship honors their important work.
