KIDCYBER TOPICS

Antarctica
Antarctica is the continent on which the south pole is located. However, it was joined on to Australia about 500 million years ago! The continent separated from Australia and drifted south, down to the bottom of the earth.

About 90% of the world's ice is in Antarctica. Most of the world's fresh water is frozen around the South Pole. Antarctica is permanently frozen. It is often called 'the frozen continent'.

Almost all of the land of Antarctica is covered in ice sheet. Only about 2% of the land shows through the ice. In winter, the sea freezes and the size of Antarctica almost doubles.

The average thickness of the ice sheet is about 2,200 metres. At its thickest point the ice is about 4,776 metres which is similar to the height of the Alps. It is estimated that the weight of all this ice is so great that if it were removed, Antarctica would rise about 1,000 metres. Because of the thickness of the ice, Antarctica is the highest continent.

In all the world, Antarctica is the:

coldest place: the coldest temperature ever recorded was at the South Pole... minus 88ºC (88º below 0º);

windiest place: winds can reach over 300 km an hour, the most severe winds being the katabatic winds;

driest place: about 4cm of rain (less than in the Sahara Desert) falls each year, in the form of snow.

Antarctica is the world's largest desert because it has so little rain and very little grows there.

There are just two seasons in Antarctica: a very short cold summer and a very long, colder winter.

At the South Pole, there is just one period of daylight each year, and it lasts for six months! The other six months of the year are dark because the sun does not come above the horizon. This is because the Earth is tilted and curved, so the sun doesn't shine as strongly onto the poles as it does at the Equator. Of the sunlight that does reach Antarctica, about 90%-95% of it bounces off again because ice is an excellent reflector of sunlight. This means that only about 5%-10% of the solar energy is available for warming. (As a comparison: grasslands reflect 30%-40% and a conifer forest 10%-15%).

No one lives in Antarctica permanently. Scientists stay for periods of time doing research. Antarctica is therefore not a country like other places. Twelve countries signed the Antarctic Treaty and have bases in their territories in Antarctica. Scientific teams from those countries stay in their country's base when they visit Antarctica. Australia is one of the countries that signed the Treaty, and has the largest Antarctic territory.

There are three South Poles!
It is a bit confusing, but the Geographic South Pole is the bottom part of the Earth's axis (imagine a stick poking through the earth from pole to pole). It is the place from which the longitude lines on the map radiate out.

Because the South Pole is on a glacier which moves about 10 metres a year, it has to be relocated each year, using satellite positioning systems. So even though the South Pole itself doesn't really move, the ice moves along with markers stuck in the ice, so the new place has to be marked each year.

The marker that is relocated on each January 1st to show the Geographic South Pole

There is a ceremonial South Pole which is now actually a few hundred metres away. It is a decorated copper pole surrounded by the flags of the twelve original nations that signed the Antarctic Treaty. Because it is more elaborate, and would involve moving the flags also, this one is not moved each year. But it is the one that is photograaphed!

The ceremonial South Pole.
The 12 nations that signed the Antarctic Treaty and have claims in Antarctica each flies a flag here.

Go here to find out about the other South Poles

Scientists work in Antarctica because it is an important place. The Antarctic ice sheet is over 70% of Earth's fresh water and about 90% of Earth's ice. If it melted, the world's sea level would rise about 70 metres. Cold water, full of oxygen, originates in Antarctica and flows out into the other oceans, helping circulate and refresh ocean waters. The sea surrounding Antarctica is home to marine life from tiny algae to huge whales. Scientists are trying to find out how Antarctica responds to environmental change, which will help them better predict how the rest of Earth will respond to future environmental changes.

People who go to Antarctica must learn many survival skills. Special housing is necessary because of the extreme cold and incredible winds that can blast the continent. There are 'melon' and 'apple' huts (seen left, on Heard Island) which are able to be anchored firmly and kept warm.

Special clothing and equipment is necessary, and all members of the team must learn some medical skills in case of emergencies. They must learn how to deal with different conditions that may arise, such as 'whiteout' which can occur at any time, when people can hardly see their hand in front of their face. People can easily become lost even if they are close to shelter. When they are travelling there are other hazards such as snow completely hiding holes that may be over a hundred metres deep.

In summer, tourists can now make brief visits to see Antarctica. Passenger ships sail all around the continent and anchor off the coast. Smaller boats take people from their ship to land, where they can enjoy guided walks. Some huts of the early explorers have been preserved and can be visited. Planes sometimes fly over Antarctica so people can see it from the air.

If you use any part of this, acknowledge it in your bibliography like this:
Antarctica (2002). [Online], Available: www.kidcyber.com.au