Islands of the Arctic and Antarctic Quiz

Answer: Nunavut

Baffin Island is one of the largest islands on Earth, ranking fifth in area. Baffin Island played a large role in Norse myth because of its proximity to Iceland and Greenland and is one of the likely locations of Helluland, one of the places explored by Leif Erikson. Today, Baffin Island is part of Nunavut and the is home to the territory's capital of Iqaluit.

Many of the island's mountains are named after figures in Norse myth, including the highest peak, Mt. Odin, and Mt. Thor which is said to be the mountain with the tallest pure vertical drop on Earth at a height of 4,100 feet or 1,250 meters.

Answer: It is the northernmost inhabited area in Iceland

Grimsey is located 25 miles off the northern coast of Iceland, making it the northernmost inhabited place in the country. Grimsey only has one settlement: Sandvik, which is considered part of the municipality of Akureyri on the mainland.

While the northernmost inhabited area in Iceland, it is not entirely north of the Arctic Circle, but rather the Arctic Circle runs right through the island, splitting it in two. The North Atlantic Current flows by Grimsey and gives the island warm water and temperature. It is typically warmer than Reykjavik which is far more southerly located. Grimsey is primarily mountainous although the southern part of the island is flatter.

Answer: Norway

Jan Mayen was formed by the Jan Mayen hotspot, a place in the Arctic Ocean known for its volcanic activity. Jan Mayen itself is home to Beerenberg Volcano, which is also the island's highest peak. Beerenberg is one of the northernmost active volcanoes on Earth, despite the fact that it is mostly covered with ice. Today, Jan Mayen belongs to Norway and is sometimes considered to be part of Svalbard for administrative purposes despite the two islands being totally under separate local jurisdictions.

Answer: Big Diomede

Big Diomede is the easternmost point of Russia and only separated from the nearest American soil by 3.5 kilometers of cold water. It has no permanent inhabitants - the Soviet government considered it too risky to have possible uncontrolled contact between the nations at this point. There are some Russian border troops stationed on the island and Russia also maintains a weather station there.

While it is of course forbidden to travel between these islands even in winter when it would easily be possible to walk across the ice, the American open-water swimmer Lynne Cox made the swim (only one-way; from the American to the Soviet side) in 1987, receiving international praise, including from the then presidents Reagan and Gorbachev.

Answer: Yesterday Isle

Unlike its Russian counterpart, Little Diomede is home to a permanent settlement of just over 100 people, living in a single village on the west coast of the island (thus facing towards Russia). The International Date Line runs between Little Diomede and Big Diomede, which causes the two islands to be 21 hours apart on the clock (not the theoretical 23 hours, because of the way time zones are organized in Russia and Alaska).

This led to the nicknames "Tomorrow Island" for Big Diomede and "Yesterday Isle" for Little Diomede.

Answer: Antipodes Islands

Antipodes Island is the largest of the group of islands known as the Antipodes Islands, which also includes the smaller Bollons Island and a heap of small volcanic stacks. The group was originally called the Penantipodes, a name which means next to the antipodes, because they were close to being exactly on the opposite side of the globe to London. Over time, the name got shortened.

The islands were first charted in 1800, and noted as being inhabited by a large number of fur seals, which were then hunted virtually to extinction.

The islands became a nature reserve, and are an important breeding area for a number of species of birds.

Answer: Australia

Macquarie Island was named for Lachlan Macquarie, then governor of the colony of New South Wales, by Frederick Hasselborough in 1810 when he stumbled across the uninhabited island while looking for suitable spots to hunt seals. The island is officially part of the Australian state of Tasmania, despite the fact that it is actually closer to New Zealand than Australia. Site of the only known nesting site for royal penguins, it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997.

Answer: It is the southernmost island known

At 79 degrees 25 minutes Southern latitude, Roosevelt Island is the southernmost island in the world. Its existence and island status have only recently been discovered as the island is permanently covered under several hundred meters of ice; however it has been measured to be about 2,896 sq. mi. (7500 sq. km.), with approximate dimensions of 81 by 40 miles (130 by 65 kilometers) and a highest (non-ice) elevation of approximately 1,804 feet (550 meters) above sea level. It has no permanent native population, but a climate research station, focusing on ice, has been established on the island.

Some sources list Berkner Island as the southernmost island, however Berkner is actually not an island - the only parts of it above sea level are ice cover; if all the ice were to melt, Berkner would be completely submerged. As such, it is more properly referenced as Berkner Ice Rise.

Answer: Cape Horn

First discovered in 1619, the Diego Ramirez Islands were named for the Spanish mapmaker of the Garcia de Nodal expedition. The islands are located 105 kilometers (65 miles) southwest of Cape Horn. They are used as the site of a meteorological station for the Chilean Navy, and serve many species of seabirds, such as the grey-headed albatross and rockhopper penguin, as a nesting place.

Answer: James Cook

The French expedition led by Marc-Joseph Marion du Fresne fell upon hard times after initially claiming the island group. Captain Marion and many of his men were attacked and killed in New Zealand by Maoris; the second in command, Jules Crozet, survived the tragedy. Crozet, who had actually claimed the islands, met James Cook at Cape Town and showed him his charts. Cook stopped at the islands, naming the western group "Marion" and the eastern group "Crozet". Subsequent visitors to the islands began naming them the Crozet Islands.