science

Mount Kirkpatrick

Mount Kirkpatrick is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Mount Kirkpatrick rather than just read about it. In short: Mount Kirkpatrick (84°20′S 166°25′E) is a lofty, generally ice-free mountain in Queen Alexandra Range 5 nautical miles (9.3 km; 5.8 mi) west of Mount Dickerson . At 4,528 metres (14,856 ft) it is the highest point in the Queen Alexandra Range, Antarctica.

Key takeaways

Mount Kirkpatrick belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Mount Kirkpatrick to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Mount Kirkpatrick from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Mount Kirkpatrick (84°20′S 166°25′E) is a lofty, generally ice-free mountain in Queen Alexandra Range 5 nautical miles (9.3 km; 5.8 mi) west of Mount Dickerson . At 4,528 metres (14,856 ft) it is the highest point in the Queen Alexandra Range, Antarctica.

Exploration and name Mount Kirkpatrick was discovered and named by the British Antarctic Expedition, 1907–1909. It was named for a Glasgow businessman, who was one of the original supporters of the expedition.

Location Mount Kirkpatrick is in the central Queen Alexandra Range to the south of Grindley Plateau, north of the Adams Mountains and northeast of the Marshall Mountains. Prebble Glacier forms on its west slopes and flows west to Lennox-King Glacier. Mount Dickerson is to its east and Decennial Peak to its south. Martin Ridge extends southwest from Decennial Peak to the head of Berwick Glacier.

Fossil site Mount Kirkpatrick holds one of the most important fossil sites in Antarctica, the Hanson Formation. Because Antarctica used to be warmer and supported dense conifer and cycad forest, and because all the continents were fused into a giant supercontinent called Pangaea, many ancient Antarctic wildlife share relatives elsewhere in the world. Mount Kirkpatrick holds the first non-avian dinosaur scientifically named on the continent, the large theropod Cryolophosaurus named by paleontologists William R. Hammer and William J. Hickerson in 1994. The other genus of non-avian dinosaur from this locality is the early sauropodomorph Glacialisaurus named by Nathan Smith and Diego Pol in 2007. Indeterminate fossils of the herbivorous tritylodont synapsid and dimorphodontid pterosaur have also been identified.

Features Nearby features include:

Fleming Summit 84°20′S 166°18′E. A peak rising to over 4,200 metres (13,800 ft) high, 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi) west of Mount Kirkpatrick. Named by the United States Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names (US-ACAN) in 1995 after Thomas H. Fleming, geologist, Ohio State University, who conducted field research in this area, 1985-86 and 1990-91.

Mount Dickerson 84°20′S 167°08′E. A prominent mountain, 4,120 metres (13,520 ft) high, standing 4 nautical miles (7.4 km; 4.6 mi) east of Mount Kirkpatrick. Named by the US-ACAN for Lieutenant Commander Richard G. Dickerson, United States Navy, VX-6 aircraft commander during United States Navy Operation Deep Freeze, 1964.

Decennial Peak 84°22′S 166°02′E. A peak 4,020 metres (13,190 ft) high situated 3 nautical miles (5.6 km; 3.5 mi) southwest of Mount Kirkpatrick. Mapped by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) from surveys and United States Navy air photos, 1958-65. Named by US-ACAN in recognition of the Decennial of the Institute of Polar Studies, Ohio State University, in 1970, the same year the University celebrated its Centennial. The University and the Institute have been very active in Antarctic investigations since 1960.

Martin Ridge 84°25′S 165°30′E. A broad ice-covered ridge bordering the west side of upper Moody Glacier. Named by US-ACAN for Major Wilbur E. Martin, United States Army, in charge of trail operations during United States Navy Operation Deep Freeze, 1963.

References

Sources

This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Geological Survey.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Mount Kirkpatrick

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Mount Kirkpatrick claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Mount Kirkpatrick before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Mount Kirkpatrick ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Mount Kirkpatrick

In research: Mount Kirkpatrick appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Mount Kirkpatrick in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Mount Kirkpatrick is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Four-thousanders of Antarctica, Mountains of the Ross Dependency, Paleontological sites of Antarctica, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Mount Kirkpatrick outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Mount Kirkpatrick in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Mount Kirkpatrick means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Mount Kirkpatrick out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Mount Kirkpatrick in simple terms?

Why does Mount Kirkpatrick matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Mount Kirkpatrick?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Mount Kirkpatrick.