Karl-Alexander Island

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Location of Karl Alexander Island in the Franz Josef Archipelago
Location of Karl Alexander Island in the Franz Josef Archipelago

Karl Alexander Island (Russian: Остров Карла-Александра), also known as Zemlya Karla-Alexandra (Земля Карла Александра), is an island in Franz Josef Land, Russia. Its latitude is 81° 28' N and its longitude 57° 50' E

Karl Alexander Island's length is 29 km and its maximum width is 18 km. Its area is 329 km², but very little of it is ice-free. The highest point on the island is 365 m.

This island is part of the Zemlya Zichy subgroup of the Franz Joseph Archipelago. It is separated from Rainer Island in the east by a 2.5 km narrow sound and from Jackson Island in the South by a 6 km wide sound.

Karl Alexander Island was named by the Austro-Hungarian North Pole Expedition after one of the noblemen that financed the venture, Austro-Hungarian aristocrat Alfred Wilhelm Karl Alexander Graf von Salm-Hoogstraeten (born 25 May 1851 in Münster, died 17 January 1919 in Vienna).

This island should not be confused with Alexandra Land, also in the Franz Josef archipelago.

[edit] Adjacent islands

  • Off Karl Alexander Island's northwestern point lie the Chichagov Islands (Острова чичагова; Ostrova Chichagova). These islands were named after Arctic explorer Pavel Vasilievich Chichagov (1767-1848), the son of Admiral Vasili Yakovlevich Chichagov of the Russian Navy.
  • To the west of Karl Alexander Island's souththwestern point lie the Pontremoli Islands (Острова Понтремоли; Ostrova Pontremoli), at lat 81° 24' N; long 56° 27' E. They are named after Pontremoli, a town in Tuscany.

There are three small islets off Karl Alexander Island's northeastern shores:

  • The largest one is called Torupa Island (Остров Торупа; Ostrov Torup), located at lat 81° 31' N; long 58° 27' E . It is named after Torup, a town in Scandinavia.
  • Northeast of Torup Island lies smaller Coburg Island (Остров Кобург; Ostrov Koburg), at lat 81° 52' N; long 58° 14' E. This island is named after the Saxe-Coburg-Gotha dynasty. Princess Stéphanie of Belgium, the wife of Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria (after whom Rudolf Island was named) belonged to this dynasty.
  • Ostrov Khouena (Остров Хоуэна), is located at lat 81° 49' N; long 58° 32' E. This island was named after Russian Army Captain (and later painter) Otto Howen (1774 - 1848).

[edit] References

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