Present‐day glacier cover on the peri‐Antarctic Islands

The article presents the results of cartographic analyses of the parameters of glacierization of the peri‐Antarctic islands located within the zone of iceberg drift. Data presented include the areas of the islands, area of glacier cover, ice thickness, and ice reserves, on the basis of marine basins. The area of the glacier cover amounts to 25,566 km2, the total reserves of ice amount to 5737 km (water equivalent). The area of glacier ice represents only about 20% of that of ice bodies of similar morphology located within the ice‐shelf belt around the continent. Glacier ice is very scarce on islands in the southern Indian Ocean. The extent of glacier cover on the peri‐Antarctic islands is greater than on polar islands in the northern hemisphere, which are situated in higher latitudes.