Victoria Land, Antarctica, satellite image. This area includes Antarctica's Dry Valleys, which are usually ice and snow-free due to exceptionally low precipitation. The American research station of McMurdo lies on Ross Island at the foot of Mount Erebus. To the left lies the Ross Sea and the vast expanse of the Ross Ice Shelf. Inland lie the Transantarctic Mountains and behind them to the right is the high plateau of the East Antarctic Ice Cap. This image uses data from four satellite systems (see C004/566). The datasets used for this image were assembled for the International Polar Year (2007-2008).