Sovetskoe Plateau
Sovetskoe Plateau
the highest part of the surface of the ice sheet in the central part of Eastern Antarctica (75°–84° S lat., 25°–105° E long.). The Sovetskoe Plateau is approximately 2,000 km long and 450 km wide. Elevations range from 3,500 m at the periphery to 4,000 m and more toward the center. The central part of the plateau covers the subglacial Gamburtsev Mountains. The ice of the Sovetskoe Plateau is 750 to 3,800 m thick.
The Sovetskoe Plateau is the coldest part of Antarctica. The average annual temperature is below –56°C, with an average July temperature of below –72°C. A world’s record low temper ature of –88.3°C was reported at Vostok Station on Aug. 24, 1960. The Sovetskoe Plateau was discovered by a Soviet antarctic expedition in 1957–58.