Mawson Peak

Mawson Peak is an active volcanic summit of the Big Ben volcanic massif on Heard Island, an Australian external territory in the Indian Ocean. With an elevation of 2,745 metres (9,006 ft), it is higher than any peak on the Australian mainland and, among Australian mountains, is surpassed only by mountains in the Australian Antarctic Territory. Mawson Peak and other volcanic features on Heard and McDonald Islands are Australia's only active volcanoes. The peak is named after the Australian Antarctic explorer Douglas Mawson. Mawson Peak is a largely symmetrical volcanic cone with a height of around 706 m (2,316 ft). It lies on top of a plateau that was likely left by a sector collapse on Big Ben. Mawson Peak is believed to have begun forming within approximately the last 40,000 years. It is volcanically active, frequently emitting smoke and vapour and occasionally releasing flows of lava. A small cylindrical crater of pooled lava has been observed on Mawson Peak in the past, but more recent observations suggest that it may have since been replaced by a fissure. Following two failed attempts in 1953 and a failed attempt in 1963, three successful ascents of Mawson Peak have been made in 1965, 1983, and 2000.