South Georgia Island is a haven for wildlife
South Georgia Island is a haven for wildlife Today’s Image of the Day from the European Space Agency features the island of South Georgia in the southern Atlantic Ocean, which forms a British Overseas Territory with the South Sandwich Islands.
South Georgia is home to five million seals and 65 million birds, including the Wandering Albatross – the largest flying bird species in the world. The surrounding waters support migrating whales and a large population of penguins. South Georgia (Spanish: Isla San Pedro, Portuguese: Ilha São Pedro/Geórgia do Sul) is an island in the southern Atlantic Ocean that is part of the British Overseas Territory of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. The main settlement is Grytviken. South Georgia is 167.4 kilometres (104 mi) long and 1.4 to 37 km (0.9 to 23.0 miles) wide. It is about 830 km (520 mi) northeast of Coronation Island and 550 km (340 mi) northwest from Zavodovski Island, the nearest South Sandwich island.
Due to its remote location and inhospitable conditions, there is no permanent human presence on the island. However, a British Antarctic Survey research station operates in the capital, King Edward Point.
The UK Government designated South Georgia as one of the world’s largest sustainable use Marine Protected Areas in 2012. South Georgia Island is a haven for wildlife
The image was captured on February 22, 2018 by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission.
Image Credit: ESA
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By Chrissy Sexton, Earth.com Staff Writer
