Bouvet Island in the Atlantic Ocean

Bouvet Island, whose photo is below, is a small patch of land that is located in the southern part of the Atlantic Ocean. It covers an area of 58 kilometers square and is uninhabited. The distance from here to Antarctica, South America and Africa is quite large and approximately the same (about 1600 kilometers).

Short story

Bouvet is an island that was discovered quite by accident. It happened on January 1, 1739 at that time. Then the French traveler Bouvet de Lozier during the study of the Antarctic accidentally discovered it. As the researcher later recalled in his memoirs, initially because of a strong fog, he took this land for the cape of some unknown continent. Its name was given to the island in honor of its discoverer. On December 10, 1825, the first documented landing of people took place here. They were the representatives of the British expedition headed by Captain Norris. At the same time he proclaimed this land an English property.

In the winter of 1927 the first long-term parking on Bouvet is dated. The island was then visited by the crew of the ship "Norway" from the country of the same name. Captain Lars Christensen declared him the property of Norway, and the following year the king of the country issued a decree by his decree. Since this land site could not boast of strategic and material value, the British government formally renounced it. Now there is an open meteorological station in the autonomous mode , whose prevention is carried out only once a year.

Geography

Geographical coordinates of Bouvet Island are 54 degrees, 26 minutes south latitude and 3 degrees, 24 minutes east longitude. It is a tiny section of land, formed as a result of several eruptions of the volcano Olavtoppen. On the same mountain at an altitude of 780 meters above sea level is its highest point. The local relief is mountainous. The slopes of the hills are almost completely covered with glaciers. The coast has a regular round shape without bays and coves. Small beaches are denuded due to sliding glaciers and consist of black sand of lava origin.

Climatic conditions

Bouvet is an island that is located in the subantarctic belt. In this regard, it is not surprising that it is characterized by appropriate climatic conditions. In particular, the summer here is consistently cold. The air temperature at this time averages 10 degrees below zero. In winter, the thermometer is usually in the range of -5 to +1 degrees. Almost throughout the year, strong winds blow here, and a lot of precipitation falls in the form of snows and drizzards.

Animal and plant life

Now Bouvet is an island that is a nature reserve. Its western part is partly free of glaciers. Such conditions have become a favorable habitat for ten species of seabirds. Due to the scarcity of volcanic soil, the severity of the climate, and also the lack of liquid moisture, only a few species of lichens and mosses are found here. Vivid representatives of the local fauna can be called sea elephants, seals, as well as several species of penguins that appear here during the breeding season.

Tourism

As already mentioned above, Bouvet Island is uninhabited. Moreover, there are no historical documents confirming the fact that people have ever stayed here for wintering. This is not surprising, since you can get here either by boat from a nearby ship or by helicopter, because there are no suitable bays for entering the ships. From a tourist point of view, an extinct volcano with an ice-filled crater, which covers almost the whole territory of the glacier, untouched nature, and an interesting (albeit meager) fauna can be called attractive here. Every year nearby on the ship "Alexey Marishev" passes the Antarctic cruise, which makes a two-day stop near the island. At the same time landing of people on the shore is not provided. Therefore, they can observe this patch of land only at a distance.

Interesting Facts

The development of the island is extremely difficult due to geographical and weather conditions. The landing on the southern coast is hampered by glaciers, and on the other side - steep cliffs, whose height reaches a mark of 490 meters.

In 1971, the Norwegian authorities declared the island of Bouvet a reserve. Why this was done is not clear, because people here are extremely rare.

In 1964, not far from this island, a ship with good water and food supplies was discovered. Until now, it remains a mystery to those who traveled on it and where the passengers disappeared.

According to unofficial information, in the vicinity of Bouvet in 1979 an outbreak was recorded, which could be classified as a nuclear weapon test. Whatever it was, significant evidence of this fact has not yet been found.

To visit this place, a Norwegian visa is required.

The nearest people live 1404 miles away. In particular, on the island of Tristan da Cunha permanently inhabited by about 270 people. On its territory there are all modern attributes of civilization - the Internet, cafes and motor transport.