Executive Committee Range


The Executive Committee Range is a mountain range consisting of five major volcanoes, which trends north-south for along the 126th meridian west, in Marie Byrd Land, Antarctica.
The complete range was discovered by the United States Antarctic Service Expedition, during a flyover of the area on 15 December 1940, and named for the Executive Committee of the Expedition. Four of the five mountains are named in honor of individual members of the committee; Mount Sidley, the most imposing mountain in the range and highest volcano in Antarctica, had been discovered and named by Rear Admiral Byrd in 1934, during his privately funded Second Antarctic Expedition. The entire range was mapped in detail, by the United States Geological Survey, using various surveys and U.S. Navy trimetrogon photography performed from 1958 to 1960.

Mountains

The following are the five mountains, all volcanic in origin, of the Executive Committee Range, in order from south to north.

Mount Waesche

Mount Waesche, the southernmost mountain in the range, rises to.

Mount Sidley

Mount Sidley, northeast of Mount Waesche, is the highest in the range and the highest volcano in Antarctica, with a summit of.

Mount Hartigan

Mount Hartigan is a broad mountain immediately north of Mount Sidley. Mount Hartigan rises to, at the higher of its twin Boudette Peaks, located in its northern portion.
The mountain was discovered by the United States Antarctic Service expedition on a flight, Dec. 15, 1940, and named for Rear Admiral Charles C. Hartigan, U.S. Navy, Navy Department member of the Antarctic Service Executive Committee.

Mount Cumming

Mount Cumming is a low, mostly snow-covered mountain, volcanic in origin, located midway between Mount Hampton and Mount Hartigan. A circular snow-covered crater occupies the summit area, rising to at Annexstad Peak, on the southwest side of the crater rim.
Discovered by the U.S. Antarctic Service on a flight, Dec. 15, 1940, and named for Hugh S. Cumming, Jr., State Department member of the U.S. Antarctic Service Executive Committee. Mapped by U.S. Geological Survey from surveys and U.S. Navy trimetrogon photography, 1958-60.

Mount Hampton

Mount Hampton, the northernmost mountain in the range, rises to at Marks Peak, on the south side of its crater rim.

Other geological features

Peaks

The five mountains have a number of associated subsidiary peaks that have been identified and named.
Chang Peak rises to on the northeastern slope of Mount Waesche.
Doumani Peak rises to on the southern slopes of Mount Sidley.
Lavris Peak rises to in the northeastern portion of Mount Hartigan.
Le Vaux Peak is a small peak on the east side of the crater rim of Mount Cumming. Mapped by United States Geological Survey from surveys and U.S. Navy aerial photographs, 1958-60. Named by Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names for Howard A. Le Vaux, auroral physicist at Byrd Station, 1959, and a member of the Marie Byrd Land Traverse Party, 1959-60.
Mintz Peak rises to on the southeast corner of Mount Hartigan.
Tusing Peak rises to from the central portion of Mount Hartigan.
Whitney Peak is a conspicuous peak rising to, located northwest of Mount Hampton, from which it is separated by a distinctive ice-covered saddle.
Woolam Peak is a small peak on the southern part of the crater rim of Mount Cumming.

Miscellaneous

The Feyerharm Knoll is an ice-covered knoll protruding to in a terrain on the lower northeastern slope of Mount Sidley. The Weiss Amphitheater is an amphitheater-like caldera, wide and breached at the southern side, occupying the south-central part of Mount Sidley.

Recent and Ongoing Magmatism

In November 2013, Lough et al. reported deep long period volcanic earthquakes centered at depths of 30-40 km approximately 55 km S of Mount Sidley that were interpreted as indications of present deep crustal magmatic activity beneath the Executive Committee Range. Ice penetrating radar results reported in this study indicated a sub-ice topographic feature, interpreted as a volcano, above the seismic swarms. The study also reported a mid-icecap ash layer about 8,000 years old that was interpreted as probably originating at nearby Mount Waesche.