Difference between revisions of "Template:POTD protected"

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The '''[[Claimant Letter]]''' is the founding document of [[Westarctica]]. The purpose of the letter was analogous to a Declaration of Independence, although Westarctica was not under the authority of any world government at the time it declared itself to be a [[sovereignty|sovereign]] nation.
The '''[[Backer Islands]]''' are a chain of small islands at the south side of [[Cranton Bay]]. The islands trend northwest for 22 kilometers (12 nmi) from the [[ice shelf]] which forms the southern limit of the bay.


[[Grand Duke Travis]] completed writing the letter on October 30th, but he didn't print and sign it until the following Thursday, on the evening of November 1st. As before signing the first of the nine letters, he uttered the words: "With this pen, the die is cast." He then signed all nine letters and mailed them at the Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania post office the following morning.
In 2011, scientists from the POLar Earth-observing NETwork (POLENET) traveled to the Backer Islands via a Twin Otter aircraft and installed a GPS monitoring site. This equipment is used to remotely monitor GPS and seismic data that will help scientists determine trends in ice sheet movement and other geophysical phenomena.


Despite the Claimant Letter being dated 30 October and signed on 1 November, the 2nd of November is a [[Public Holidays in Westarctica|public holiday]] celebrated as Independence Day in [[Westarctica]] due to it being the day Travis gained the courage to undertake the action of actually mailing the letters. The largest celebration to date was the [[Westarctica's 15th Anniversary Celebration|15th Anniversary Celebration]] in 2016.


<p><small>Author: [[Grand Duke Travis]]</small></p>
 
<p><small>Photographer: Ellie Boyce (UNAVCO)</small></p>
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Latest revision as of 18:28, 22 December 2025

Backer Islands GPS.jpg

The Backer Islands are a chain of small islands at the south side of Cranton Bay. The islands trend northwest for 22 kilometers (12 nmi) from the ice shelf which forms the southern limit of the bay.

In 2011, scientists from the POLar Earth-observing NETwork (POLENET) traveled to the Backer Islands via a Twin Otter aircraft and installed a GPS monitoring site. This equipment is used to remotely monitor GPS and seismic data that will help scientists determine trends in ice sheet movement and other geophysical phenomena.


Photographer: Ellie Boyce (UNAVCO)

(More Images)