What is the Ross Dependency?
Q: What is the Ross Dependency?
A: The Ross Dependency is an area of Antarctica claimed by New Zealand, which includes part of Victoria Land, most of the Ross Ice Shelf, Ross Island, Balleny Islands, and Roosevelt Island.
Q: Why is it called the Ross Dependency?
A: The Dependency is named after Sir James Clark Ross, who discovered the Ross Sea.
Q: What are the scientific bases in the Ross Dependency?
A: The scientific bases in the Ross Dependency are Scott Base (New Zealand) and McMurdo Station (USA), which are the only permanently occupied human settlements in the area, apart from the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station located on the very edge of the territory.
Q: Are there any airports in the Ross Dependency?
A: Yes, there is a snow runway at Williams Field, and depending on conditions and time of year, two ice runways, which allows wheeled and ski equipped aircraft to come and go year round.
Q: Which landmasses in the Southern Ocean are included in the Ross Dependency?
A: Other landmasses in the Southern Ocean claimed by New Zealand are also part of the Ross Dependency.
Q: Can people live in the Ross Dependency permanently?
A: The only permanent human settlements in the Ross Dependency are the scientific bases of Scott Base and McMurdo Station.
Q: What is the Ross Ice Shelf?
A: The Ross Ice Shelf is a massive floating ice platform that is the largest ice shelf of the Antarctic Ice Sheet.
