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Mount Sidley

earth science Maturity 7-9 Next article →

Mount Sidley is a very tall volcano in Antarctica.

Sidley oli 2014324 lrg
Sidley oli 2014324 lrg

It is a dormant volcano. This means it is not erupting right now. It is a shield volcano. This type of volcano has a wide shape. Most of the mountain is covered in snow. It is part of the Volcanic Seven Summits. This is a list of the highest volcanoes on each continent. Mount Sidley is the highest one in Antarctica.

MountSidleyWaescheMap
MountSidleyWaescheMap

The mountain has a very special shape. It is the highest of five volcanoes in the Executive Committee Range. This range is in Marie Byrd Land. The mountain sits northeast of Mount Waesche. On the southern side, there is a caldera. A caldera is a large crater at the top of a volcano. This huge mountain is a polygenetic shield volcano. This means it was built by many different eruptions over time.

A man named Richard E. Byrd found the mountain. He was a Rear Admiral. He saw it from an airplane. This happened on November 18, 1934. He named the mountain after Mabelle E. Sidley. She was the daughter of William Horlick. Mr. Horlick helped the Byrd Antarctic Expedition from 1933 to 1935. It is a very famous discovery in history.

Mount Sidley is in a very remote place. It is far away from most people. Because of this, not many climbers know it. Mount Erebus is the second-highest volcano in Antarctica. It is much easier to reach. That volcano is near bases in the U.S. and New Zealand. Mount Sidley is much harder to get to.

MountSidleyWaescheMap
MountSidleyWaescheMap

People finally climbed the mountain many years later. Bill Atkinson was the first person to reach the top. He was from New Zealand. He climbed it on January 11, 1990. He was working with a scientific field party. This group was part of the United States Antarctic Program.

Sidley oli 2014324 lrg
Sidley oli 2014324 lrg

His climb was a big deal for science and climbing. It shows how hard it is to explore Antarctica.

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File:MountSidleyWaescheMap.jpg
MountSidleyWaescheMap.jpg
File:Sidley oli 2014324 lrg.jpg
Sidley oli 2014324 lrg.jpg
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