Bellingshausen Sea

sea, Antarctica

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June 22, 2026

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frost smoke Frost smoke, open water, and new and young sea ice at a small lead surrounded by pack ice and icebergs in the Bellingshausen Sea, Antarctica.

The Bellingshausen Sea is a large bay of the South Pacific Ocean, located west of the Antarctic Peninsula. It is named after Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen, a Russian explorer who led the second expedition to circumnavigate Antarctica from 1819 to 1821. During this voyage, Bellingshausen discovered Peter I and Alexander I islands, which were the first landmasses sighted within the Antarctic Circle. Alexander Island, a large island within the Bellingshausen Sea, was initially believed to be part of the Antarctic mainland until 1940.123

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Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen
…(1819–21) and for whom the Bellingshausen Sea, an area of the Antarctic waters, was named.
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…(1819–21) and for whom the Bellingshausen Sea, an area of the Antarctic waters, was named.
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