Marie Byrd Land

Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Marie Byrd Land (MBL) is the portion of West Antarctica lying east of the Ross Ice Shelf and the Ross Sea and south of the Pacific Ocean, extending eastward approximately to a line between the head of the Ross Ice Shelf and Eights Coast. It stretches between 158°W and 103°24'W. The inclusion of the area between the Rockefeller Plateau and Eights Coast is based upon the leading role of Rear Admiral Richard E. Byrd in the exploration of this area. The name was originally applied by Admiral Byrd in 1929, in honor of his wife, to the northwestern part of the area, the part that was explored in that year. Because of its remoteness, even by Antarctic standards, most of Marie Byrd Land (the portion east of 150°W) has not been claimed by any sovereign nation. It is not a recognized nation, making it by far the largest single unclaimed territory on Earth, with an area of 1,610,000 km² (including Eights Coast, immediately east of Marie Byrd Land). In 1939, U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt instructed members of the Antarctic expedition to take steps to claim some of Antarctica as territory.