French Antarctic Expedition - Fourth Expedition

Fourth Expedition

From 1908 until 1910, another expedition commanded by Charcot followed with the ship Pourquoi-Pas ? IV, exploring the Bellingshausen Sea and the Amundsen Sea and discovering Loubet Land, Marguerite Bay and Charcot Island, which was named after him.

They wintered over aboard ship in a cove on the southeast side of Petermann Island, named Port Circumcision because it was spotted 1 January 1909, the traditional day for the Feast of the Circumcision.

Renaud Island was first charted and named.

Fallieres Coast was first explored in January 1909, and Charcot named it for Clement Armand Fallieres, then President of France.

Mikkelsen Bay was first seen from a distance in 1909, but it was not recognised as a bay. The Mikkelsen Islands were named after Otto Mikkelsen, Norwegian diver who inspected the damaged hull of the Pourquoi-Pas at Deception Island.

The name "Île Pavie" was given in 1909 to an island, or possible cape, shown on the French Antarctic Expedition maps in 68°27′ S 66°40′ W. From a position 15 miles southeast of Jenny Island, Maurice Bongrain, French Antarctic Expedition surveyor, made sketches of this feature which were labeled "Île Pavie" and "Cap Pavie". The area became known as Pavie Ridge.

Marguerite Bay was discovered in 1909 and Charcot named the bay for his wife.

Jenny Island (Marguerite Bay) was discovered and named by Charcot for the wife of Sub-Lieutenant Maurice Bongrain, French Navy, second officer of the expedition.

Adelaide Island was first surveyed by the expedition. They also discovered Millerand Island, which was named probably for Alexandre Millerand, French statesman. Douglas Range was seen from a distance.

Rothschild Island was named after Baron Edouard Alphonse de Rothschild (1868-1949), head of the French branch of the Rothschild family and president of the Rothschild Brothers bank.

The northern portion of Wilkins Sound was first seen and roughly mapped in 1910 on the expedition.