The Geography of Antarctica
Antarctica is Earth's southernmost continent, located literally at the bottom of the world. It is the coldest, driest, and windiest place on the planet.
Unlike the Arctic Circle at the top of the world, Antarctica has a landmass. However, its land is almost entirely covered by a thick layer of ice. In some areas, it is nearly 2-miles thick.
Another major difference from the Arctic Circle is that Antarctica does not have any countries or permanent human residents—only scientists live there temporarily to study its environment.
Antarctica is surrounded by the Southern Ocean and can be divided into two main parts: East Antarctica and West Antarctica. The Transantarctic Mountains, one of the longest mountain ranges on Earth, stretch across the continent and divide it into these two sections.
There are also ice shelves, which are thick floating platforms of ice, like the Ross Ice Shelf and the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf. Beneath all this ice, Antarctica has valleys, lakes, and mountain ranges, but they are mostly hidden from view.
Antarctica has an extremely harsh climate. In the winter, temperatures drop below -80°F. The coldest reported temperature in history is -128°F, which was recorded near the South Pole.
Even in the summer, when it is slightly warmer, temperatures barely rise above freezing. The interior of Antarctica is a cold desert, receiving less than 2 inches of precipitation each year, mostly as snow. Winds can be very strong, sometimes reaching up to 180 miles per hour, especially near the coast.
Despite its harsh environment, some wildlife has adapted to live in and around Antarctica. Penguins are the most famous animals of the region, with species like the Emperor penguin and Adélie penguin calling the icy land home.
Seals, such as the Weddell seal and the leopard seal, can also be found there, along with many types of birds. In the waters around Antarctica, whales, including blue whales and orcas, thrive in the cold, nutrient-rich waters.
Antarctica is deeply affected by climate change. A phenomenon known as "polar amplification" is speeding up warming across both Antarctica and the Arctic Circle. This describes how the temperatures near Earth's poles tend to change more rapidly. There are a number of causes, most notably that white ice and snow reflects most sunlight while dark ocean surface absorbs heat. As a result, as more ice melts, it leads to more warm ocean.
As global temperatures rise, Antarctica's ice sheets and glaciers are melting faster than ever before. This causes sea levels to rise, which can impact coastal cities and communities around the world. The warming climate also threatens the wildlife that depends on the cold Antarctic environment. Scientists are studying these changes closely to better understand how they might affect the rest of the planet in the future.