It is separated from Danes Island by the strait Danskegattet.
Its highest point is Hiertabreen, at 472 meters above sea level.
The percentage of the island covered in ice is 11.5%.
The Dutch first occupied it in 1614 (the year in which it was probably named), building a temporary whaling station on the island's southeastern promontory.
It came to be called Smeerenburg (Dutch for "Blubber Town").