Queen Maud Land Dronning Maud Land (Norwegian) | |
|---|---|
.svg) Location of Queen Maud Land (red, in Antarctica) | |
| Sovereign state |  Norway |
| Annexed by Norway | 14 January 1939 |
| Dependency status | 21 June 1957 |
| Antarctic Treaty | 23 June 1961 |
| Expanded | 12 June 2015 |
| Sector claim | 20°W – 45°E |
| Named for | Maud of Wales |
| Government | Dependency under a constitutional monarchy |
• Monarch | Harald V |
• Administered by | Ministry of Justice and Public Security |
| Area | |
• Total | 2,700,000 km2 (1,000,000 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 2,000 m (7,000 ft) |
| Highest elevation | 3,148 m (10,328 ft) |
| ISO 3166 code | AQ |
| Internet TLD | |
Queen Maud Land (Norwegian: Dronning Maud Land)[note 1] is a roughly 2.7-million-square-kilometre (1.0-million-square-mile)[5] region of Antarctica claimed by Norway as a dependent territory.[6] It borders the claimed British Antarctic Territory 20° west and the Australian Antarctic Territory 45° east. In addition, a small unclaimed area from 1939 was annexed in June 2015.[7] Positioned in East Antarctica, it makes out about one-fifth of the continent, and is named after the Norwegian Queen Maud (1869–1938).
In 1930, the Norwegian Hjalmar Riiser-Larsen was the first person known to have set foot in the territory. On 14 January 1939, the territory was claimed by Norway. On 23 June 1961, Queen Maud Land became part of the Antarctic Treaty System, making it a demilitarised zone. It is one of two Antarctic claims made by Norway, the other being Peter I Island. They are administered by the Polar Affairs Department of the Norwegian Ministry of Justice and Public Security in Oslo.
Most of the territory is covered by the east Antarctic ice sheet, and a tall ice wall stretches throughout its coast. In some areas farther within the ice sheet, mountain ranges breach through the ice, allowing for birds to breed and the growth of a limited flora. The region is divided into, from west to east, the Princess Martha Coast, Princess Astrid Coast, Princess Ragnhild Coast, Prince Harald Coast and Prince Olav Coast:
| No. | Coast | Western border | Eastern border | Width in degrees |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Princess Martha Coast | 20° 00′ W | 05° 00′ E | 25° 00′ |
| 2 | Princess Astrid Coast | 05° 00′ E | 20° 00′ E | 15° 00′ |
| 3 | Princess Ragnhild Coast | 20° 00′ E | 34° 00′ E | 14° 00′ |
| 4 | Prince Harald Coast | 34° 00′ E | 40° 00′ E | 06° 00′ |
| 5 | Prince Olav Coast | 40° 00′ E | 44° 38′ E | 04° 38′ |
| Queen Maud Land | 20° 00′ W | 44° 38′ E | 64° 38′ |
The waters off the coast are called the King Haakon VII Sea.
There is no permanent population, although there are 12 active research stations housing a maximum of around 40 scientists, the numbers fluctuating depending on the season. Six are occupied year-round, while the remainder are seasonal summer stations. The main aerodromes for intercontinental flights, corresponding[clarification needed] with Cape Town, South Africa, are Troll Airfield, near the Norwegian Troll research station, and a runway at the Russian Novolazarevskaya Station.[8]
- ^ "Dronning Mauds land". NRK-språket. 12 February 2015.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
r304was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Cite error: The named reference
m540was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Ørvoll, Oddveig Øien. "Kartlegginga av Antarktis: Internasjonale avtaler" [Mapping Antarctica: International Agreements] (in Norwegian). Norwegian Polar Institute. Archived from the original on 17 August 2011. Retrieved 15 July 2011.
- ^ "Minifacts about Norway 2011: 2. Geography, climate and environment". Statistics Norway. 2011. Retrieved 21 August 2011.
- ^ "Forutsetninger for Antarktistraktaten: Dronning Maud Lands statsrettslige stilling – "utviklingen" frem til 1957". Norsk Polarhistorie (in Norwegian). Archived from the original on 13 May 2021. Retrieved 15 May 2011.
- ^ Rapp, Ole Magnus (21 September 2015). "Norge utvider Dronning Maud Land helt frem til Sydpolen". Aftenposten (in Norwegian). Oslo, Norway. Retrieved 22 September 2015.
…formålet med anneksjonen var å legge under seg det landet som til nå ligger herreløst og som ingen andre enn nordmenn har kartlagt og gransket. Norske myndigheter har derfor ikke motsatt seg at noen tolker det norske kravet slik at det går helt opp til og inkluderer polpunktet.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
r305was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
Cite error: There are <ref group=note> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=note}} template (see the help page).