This was a super-great two hours. I was sent out with a group of Artists and Writers in Residence in case there were any sea ice or other safety hazards. I hopped out of the helicopter to drill the sea ice to make sure there was at least 30", but otherwise it turned out to be a low hazard evening.
This island is north of Ross Island, on the satellite and Ross Island Region maps under "Maps: getting oriented". There is also an Adelie penguin rookery on the other end of this island.
We were not allowed, as per the Antarctic (international) Treaty, to approach the colony, but as you can see, birds (without chicks) did come right up to us. They lack terrestrial predators and are almost as curious as we are. The adults squawk in sharp contrast to the sing-song voices, reminiscent of the little birds outside your window, of the chicks. What a treat.
Like most species, many of the chicks do not reach adulthood. You probably know about the chicks being incubated and raised during the long dark cold Antarctic winter: the conditions represent the trade-off for not having to deal with predators. We saw dead chicks and long-frozen eggs in addition to the live chicks you can barely see in these photos.