User:Kahastok/South Georgia

South Georgia (Isla San Pedro) is an uninhabited island in the South Atlantic Ocean, located 1390 km from the Falkland Islands and 2150 km from Tierra del Fuego.

The island is 170 km long and between 2 and 40 km wide, with a total land area of 3756 sqkm. The highest peak is Mount Paget at 2934 m. The island is largely covered with glaciers, ice caps and snowfields.

The island is administered by the United Kingdom as part of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, though Argentina also claims sovereignty.

Geography
South Georgia is very mountainous, with eleven peaks over 2000 m in height, divided between the Allardyce Range and Salvesen Range. The mountains are flanked by deep glaciers: over 75% of the island is covered with snow and ice year-round.

The island is an important home to elephant seals, albatrosses, penguins and petrels.

Population
In the early twentieth century, the island supported a whaling station at Grytviken and a population of 2,000. In modern times, the island has become uninhabited other than by temporary staff of the British Antarctic Survey, which maintains stations at King Edward Point and Bird Island.