Marion Island

Marion Island rises from the cold southern Indian Ocean, the larger of two remote volcanic islands. In 1772 the French navigator Marion du Fresne sighted the pair and named the larger Île de l'Espérance. Bad weather prevented his ships from landing. James Cook sighted them in 1776 and named the group for Prince Edward. Sealers later visited these exposed shores, and the larger island acquired the name Marion after the French navigator.