from Sunday Herald, 25 September 2011
It’s one of the most desolate and disputed pinnacles of rock in the world. Lashed by huge waves, besieged by seabirds and dirty white with guano, Rockall pokes its tiny head above the Atlantic, 228 miles west of North Uist.
Now, 200 years after the first recorded landing on the rocky islet, it is starting to reveal its hidden depths. For the first time, Scottish government scientists have mapped the sweeping underwater mountain ranges of which Rockall forms the visible peak.
They have discovered a series of “spectacular” ridges, reefs and crevasses fanning out across the seabed. And they have found huge conger eels lurking in the rocks, along with ling and tusk fish.
It was back on September 8th 1811, that Royal Navy officer Basil Hall set precarious foot on Rockall and climbed its 19-metre summit. Since then it has been at the centre of a series of international arguments over which country it actually belongs to.
Ireland, Iceland and Denmark (on behalf of the Faroes) have all staked their claims. Its ownership, and the valuable fishing and mineral rights that could go with it, is currently under investigation by the United Nations.
For the moment, however, Rockall is one of the British Isles and by far the westernmost part of Scotland. That’s why scientists from Marine Scotland and Scottish Natural Heritage have been trying to learn more about it.
In July they took the Marine Patrol Vessel, Scotia, on an expedition to the area, equipped with a multibeam echo-sounder, underwater video cameras and specialist fish traps. The result, unveiled today, is a brightly coloured, high-resolution map of the seabed around Rockall and its sometimes-submerged neighbour, Helen’s Reef.
According to the scientists, the map shows that the two rocks are only the pinprick summits of vast continents hidden under the sea. “What emerged was truly spectacular,” they claim. “Numerous pinnacles, trenches, mounds, ridges and bedrock reefs were revealed.”
Francis Neat, chief scientist in Marine Scotland’s Rockall survey team, disclosed that ferocious weather had prevented previous surveys. “However, this year we got lucky - the sea was calm and the quality of the data gathered is excellent,” he said.
“It's really incredible to finally be able to appreciate what Scotland’s most remote marine ecosystem looks likes beneath the waves. Video footage of the reef area shows much is scoured bedrock interspersed with sand and boulders.”
Neat pointed out that squid were caught in the deep trench between Rockall and Helen’s Reef, and well as other fish in the surrounding seas. “By using fish traps we also discovered the reef is inhabited by huge conger eels, ling and tusk,” he added.
“Our goal is to support long-term, sustainable fisheries while ensuring appropriate marine conservation. The new data from the Rockall area will help us achieve this.”
Until now there were no detailed maps of the shallow waters around Rockall, which rises 2,000 metres from the deep ocean plains. The islet is probably best known for giving its name to one of the sea areas in the BBC’s daily shipping forecasts.
The Scottish environment secretary, Richard Lochhead, described Rockall as an “enigmatic” place that had been a magnet for adventurers, a location for pirate radio broadcasters and a subject of international disputes over ownership. He was in no doubt, however, about whom it belonged to.
“It’s fantastic that Scotland has reaffirmed our possession of Rockall through this survey,” he declared. “This information will help to deepen our understanding of what is a unique and isolated marine ecosystem.”
According to Lochhead, the Rockall survey was part of an ambitious programme to improve knowledge of Scotland’s seas. “All the new information gathered will prove critical as we seek to strike the right balance between marine conservation and economic development,” he said.
Attempts to claim Rockall
1811: Royal Navy officer Basil Hall led a small landing party from the frigate HMS Endymion and climbed the 19-metre summit.
1862: A Mr Johns of HMS Porcupine stepped ashore briefly while surveying the seabed in advance of laying a transatlantic telegraph cable.
1955: At the height of the Cold War, a Royal Navy team was dropped by helicopter to hoist a Union Jack and install a plaque, formally annexing the island for the British Empire to prevent the Russians from installing equipment to spy on a nuclear missile test.
1985: Former paratrooper, SAS soldier and adventurer, Tom McClean, lived on the island for more than a month to affirm Britain’s claim to it.
1985: The Thatcher-hating penguin featured in Steve Bell’s Guardian cartoon strip annexed the island to form the Socialist Seabirds Republic of Rockall.
1997: The environmental group, Greenpeace, occupied the rock for 42 days in a protest against oil exploration, naming it the new global state of Waveland.
2010: The island adventurer, Andy Strangeway, won planning permission from Western Isles Council to install a plaque to replace the 1955 one that had apparently gone missing, though two planned expeditions had to be cancelled.
A Goon Show broadcast in 1955 and entitled "Napoleon's Piano" comments upon the hoisting of the flag on Rockall that same year.
Posted by: Jeremy Hawthorn | 25 September 2011 at 08:33 PM