Practically the whole of the central and southern part of the island is covered by the massive Academy of Sciences Glacier, between Krenkel Bay in the east and Zhuravlev Bay in the west.

It rises to a height of 780 m. Komsomolets Island is home to the largest ice cap in Russia, the Academy of Sciences Ice Cap.

[3] The soil of the island is mostly composed of loose loam and sands, a tundra desert scattered with mosses and lichens.

[4] The island was discovered by Boris Vilkitsky in 1913, but it was not proven to be an island until 1931, when Georgy Ushakov and Nikolay Urvantsev charted the archipelago during their 1930–32 expedition.

In keeping with their tradition of naming the islands after events and movements of the Russian Revolution, this island was named in honour of the members of the Komsomol, the "Communist Union of Youth."