Antarctica
Deception Island
Welcome to Deception Island — a ring-shaped island that's actually the top of a giant volcano! Ships can sail right through a narrow gap into the flooded volcano's hidden middle.
Why is it famous?
It's shaped like a horseshoe because it's really the rim of a volcano, with the middle flooded by the sea.
There's only one way in: a narrow gap called Neptune's Bellows, just 500 meters (1,600 feet) wide — sail through it and you're floating inside an active volcano!
How did it form?
Thousands of years ago, a massive volcanic eruption blew out the center of the mountain, leaving behind a giant bowl-shaped crater called a caldera.
Seawater flooded into the empty crater afterward, creating a huge natural harbor hidden inside the ring of cliffs.
Amazing facts
Deception Island is one of only two active volcanoes in Antarctica, and it has erupted more than 20 times since the 1800s.
Because heat from the volcano warms the ground, visitors can dig a hole in the beach and feel warm water bubble up — even in freezing Antarctica!
Quick facts
- Deception Island is one of only two active volcanoes in Antarctica, and it has erupted more than 20 times since the 1800s.
- Because heat from the volcano warms the ground, visitors can dig a hole in the beach and feel warm water bubble up — even in freezing Antarctica!
- Over 100,000 pairs of chinstrap penguins nest on the island every year.
- An old orange airplane, abandoned decades ago, still sits rusting on the black volcanic sand.