Bigourdan Fjord (67°33′S 67°23′W / 67.550°S 67.383°W / -67.550; -67.383) is a fjord or sound on the west coast of Graham Land, Antarctica. It is about 12 mi (19 km) long in an east–west direction and averages about 2 mi (3 km) wide. It lies between Pourquoi Pas Island and the southwestern part of Arrowsmith Peninsula, in the Loubet Coast region of the Antarctic Peninsula.[1][2]
Geography
Bigourdan Fjord separates the northern side of Pourquoi Pas Island and nearby Blaiklock Island from Arrowsmith Peninsula. The fjord forms part of the indented west coast of Graham Land, an area characterized by islands, peninsulas, fjords and ice-covered coastal terrain. Nearby named features include Swash Reef.[2]
History and naming
The fjord was discovered and roughly charted by the French Antarctic Expedition, 1908–1910, led by Jean-Baptiste Charcot. Charcot named it Fiord Bigourdan after Guillaume Bigourdan (1851–1932), a French astronomer and member of the expedition's scientific commission.[2]
The feature was later recharted by the British Graham Land Expedition under John Riddoch Rymill in 1936. It was further surveyed by the Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey from Stonington Island in November 1948.[2]
See also
References
- "Bigourdan Fjord". Composite Gazetteer of Antarctica. Australian Antarctic Data Centre. Retrieved 1 June 2026.
- "Bigourdan Fjord". Composite Gazetteer of Antarctica. Australian Antarctic Data Centre. Retrieved 1 June 2026.
This article incorporates public domain material from "Bigourdan Fjord". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey.