Belaya Zemlya (
Russian: Белая Земля, literally "White Land") is a group of three cold, glaciated islands. It is a geographical subgroup of
Franz Josef Land,
Russian Federation.
History
This area was named Hvidtenland (Norwegian: "White Land") by
Fridtjof Nansen, who reached this desolate place on August 5, 1895 during his polar expedition. In his map he drew four islands. Since the limit of
permanent ice crosses Belaya Zemlya, it is often difficult to distinguish between land and sea. However, as the cartography of the Franz Josef Archipelago became more accurate, it became apparent that it was a group of three islands.
Belaya Zemlya is the point of the Franz Josef Archipelago that
Valerian Albanov was trying to reach when he left the
Svyataya Anna with part of the crew, but owing to the
polar ice drift and the abundance of
polynias along his route, he ended up far to the southwest in
Alexandra Land.[1]
Geography
Belaya Zemlya is separated from the main Franz Josef group by a 45 km (28 mi) broad strait known as Proliv Severo-Vostochnyy.[2] The strait running through Belaya Zemlya is called Proliv Sarsa, named after
Michael Sars.[3]
Islands
Eva Island (Остров Ева-Лив), or "Eva-Liv Island", as it includes the
Liv Peninsula. With 25 km (16 mi) in length, this is the largest island of the group.
Eva Island was named after Fridtjof's wife Eva Nansen (died in 1907). The island is completely covered by two
ice domes.[4]
Adelaide Island (Остров Аделаиды). Only 2 km (1.2 mi) in length, this is a very small island. It is located 5 km (3.1 mi) to the southwest of Eva Island's western end. Adelaide Island was named by Nansen,[5] after his mother Adelaide Wedel-Jarlsberg.
Freeden Island (Остров Фреден), sometimes also spelt "Fryeden" because of the
transliteration from the Russian. This is a larger oval-shaped island, with a length of 8.2 km (5.1 mi). It lies 2.5 km (1.6 mi) south of Adelaide Island. Freeden Island was named by
Julius Payer after
Wilhelm von Freeden.[6]
^Nansen, Fridtjof (1897).
"Forelöbig Kartskisse over Ögruppen Franz Josef's Land" (Map). Fram over Polhavet. Den norske Polarfærd 1893-1896. ... Med et Tillæg af Otto Sverdrup (in Danish). Kristiania. p. 1151. Retrieved 12 January 2021 – via British Library.