Zavodovski Island

Zavodovski Island
NASA image of Zavodovski Island
(viewed at an angle from the north/northwest)
Zavodovski Island is located in Atlantic Ocean
Zavodovski Island
Zavodovski Island
Location in South Georgia
and the South Sandwich Islands.
Geography
LocationSouthern Ocean
Coordinates56°18′S 27°35′W / 56.30°S 27.58°W / -56.30; -27.58[1]
Length4 km (2.5 mi)
Width3.8 km (2.36 mi)
Highest elevation551 m (1808 ft)
Highest pointMount Curry
Administration
United Kingdom
Demographics
Populationuninhabited

Zavodovski Island is an uninhabited volcanic island in the Traversay Islands subgroup of the South Sandwich Islands, which are located southeast of South Georgia in the South Atlantic Ocean. Zavodovski is the northernmost of the South Sandwich Islands and consists of one major stratovolcano, Mount Curry, which is surrounded to the east by a plain formed by lava flows. Mount Curry has a fumarolically active crater on the southwestern side, which also bears traces of a sector collapse. An eruption occurred in 2016.

The island was officially discovered in December 1819 by Thaddeus von Bellingshausen. The largest penguin colony on Earth with over a million breeding pairs is situated on Zavodovski. It consists mostly of chinstrap penguins, although other seabirds and penguin species breed on the island as well. Early explorers noted the bad smell of the island, which is reflected in numerous placenames.