It is surrounded by a large number of secondary craters, betraying its volcanic origin. There is little vegetation, except for lichen, in the island's centre. Elsewhere the vegetation is mainly mosses and ferns, and the terrain is very boggy. This is due to the abundant snow and rain. There are no trees, due to the persistent, strong westerly winds commonly termed the Roaring Forties .
Sunshine is rare, and the temperature falls below freezing in winter.
In short, it is ideal for a weather station, though not its inhabitants. Most of the photographs on this page were taken during rare periods of fine weather, which should not be taken to be the norm. The islands are surrounded by huge Kelp beds which make navigation difficult. The map above is in Macromedia Flash format. You can zoom in on the map by right clicking on it when viewing the Flash image, or you can view a GIF image, .