South Orkney Islands

The South Orkney Islands are a group of islands in the Southern Ocean, about 604 kilometers northeast of the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula, comprising four main islands with a total area of roughly 620 square kilometers. Around 90 percent of the terrain is ice covered, with only limited tundra vegetation, and the islands support seabird and penguin colonies. Two permanent research stations, run by Argentina and Britain, operate there under the Antarctic Treaty System.