15 Fun Facts about Antarctica

Antarctica.Author Robert L. Dale. WIKIMEDIA

15 Fun Facts about Antarctica

The continent with the least population on Earth is Antarctica. The Southern Ocean, often known as the Antarctic Ocean, encircles it, and it contains the geographic South Pole. It is located nearly entirely south of the Antarctic Circle. With an extent of 14,200,000 km2, Antarctica is the fifth-largest continent after Africa and Europe (5,500,000 sq mi). The Antarctic ice sheet, which averages 1.9 km in thickness, covers the majority of Antarctica (1.2 mi).

Among the continents, Antarctica has the greatest average elevation and is typically the coldest, driest, and windiest. East Antarctica is colder than its western cousin, considering that it is higher up. The continent’s center is often only briefly penetrated by weather fronts, leaving it dry and chilly with modest wind speeds. Antarctica holds the record for the lowest measured temperature on Earth, −89.2 °C (−128.6 °F). The coastal regions can reach temperatures over 10 °C (50 °F) in summer.

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1.90% of the World’s Ice is Found in Antarctica

Antarctica.Author Liam Quinn.WIKIMEDIA

90% of the world’s ice is found in Antarctica. Global sea levels would increase by around 58 m if all of this ice disappeared (190 ft). Moreover, Antarctica freezes around 70% of the world’s freshwater. Due to the glaciers’ increasing movement toward the ocean, the continent is losing mass.

Snow that has already fallen on Antarctica’s ice sheets is being re-deposited, partially offsetting the loss of mass. According to a 2018 systematic review research, ice loss throughout the whole continent was 43 gigatonnes (Gt) per year on average between 1992 and 2002, but it increased to 220 Gt per year on average during the five years from 2012 to 2017. According to estimates, Antarctica contributes 8 to 14 millimeters overall to sea level increase (0.31 to 0.55 in).

The Antarctic Peninsula and West Antarctica have seen the majority of the ice loss. Mass balance estimates for the entire East Antarctic Ice Sheet range from relatively positive to substantially negative. Certain areas of East Antarctica, notably Wilkes Land, have seen a rise in ice outflow.

2. Precipitation in Antarctica Occurs in the Form of Snow

Snowfall serves as precipitation in Antarctica, where it accumulates to create the massive ice sheet that blankets the continent. The ice is flowing toward the coast due to gravity. After that, the ice flows into the ocean, frequently producing enormous floating ice shelves. When they reach warmer ocean waters, these shelves may dissolve or turn into icebergs that eventually melt away.

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3. Researchers have Spent Decades Examining the Ozone Layer in Antarctica

Hole in the Ozone Layer Over Antarctica. Author NASA. WIKIMEDIA

Since the 1970s, researchers have examined the ozone layer in the air over Antarctica. Working with data they had collected at Halley Research Station on the Brunt Ice Shelf, British scientists identified a sizable region of low ozone concentration over Antarctica in 1985.

Nearly the whole continent is affected by the “ozone hole,” which reached its height in September 2006; the longest-lasting episode occurred in 2020. The breakdown of ozone into other gases, which happens when chlorofluorocarbons and halons are released into the atmosphere, is what causes the ozone layer to be depleted.

The ozone layer is gradually destroyed as a result of chemical processes that the clouds catalyze. Ozone-depleting substance emissions have been constrained by the 1987 Montreal Protocol. Above Antarctica, the ozone hole is expected to gradually mend.

A stratospheric cooling of around 6 °C (11 °F) may result from ozone depletion. The cooling makes the polar vortex stronger and keeps cold air from leaving the South Pole, which cools the East Antarctic ice sheet’s continental bulk. The Antarctic Peninsula in particular is thus exposed to greater temperatures, which hastens the melting of the ice in the Antarctic Peninsula.

4. There is no Time Zone for Antarctica

Due to the location of the South Pole on the continent, Antarctica lies on every line of longitude. Theoretically, Antarctica should be in every time zone, but it’s challenging to say which time zone would be suitable because regions south of the Antarctic Circle suffer dramatic day-night cycles around the dates of the June and December solstices.

Time zones are often based on territorial claims for practical purposes, however, many stations observe the time of the nation that controls them or the time zone of their supply base. Despite the sparse availability of clocks, Coordinated Universal Time is typically assumed in regions south of 80 degrees latitude.

5. Antarctica has Active volcanoes

Aerial photo of Mount Erebus volcano in Antarctica.Author Eli Duke. WIKIMEDIA

Two of the volcanoes that are found in Antarctica are currently active. The southernmost active volcano on Earth is Mount Erebus, which is Antarctica’s second-highest volcano. Ice fumaroles and twisted ice sculptures grow around gases that seep from vents close to the volcanic crater of this icebound volcano, which is situated on Ross Island.

On Deception Island, a volcanic caldera in the South Shetland Islands, there is another active volcano. After being the site of a prosperous whaling station and then a research station, it was abandoned following the most recent eruption in 1969.

6. Did You Know About The Blood Falls in Antarctica?

Blood Falls seep from the end of the Taylor Glacier into Lake Bonney. Author Peter Rejcek. WIKIMEDIA

In the Taylor Valley of the McMurdo Dry Valleys in Victoria Land, East Antarctica, a seawater plume contaminated with iron oxide flows out onto the ice-covered surface of West Lake Bonney and is known as Blood Falls.

The Australian geologist Thomas Griffith Taylor, who first studied the valley that bears his name, discovered the reddish deposit in 1911. The red tint was once attributed by early explorers to red algae, but iron oxides were eventually shown to be responsible.

Little breaches in the ice cascades periodically leak iron-rich hypersaline water. Several kilometers from its modest outflow at Blood Falls, the saltwater source is a subglacial lake of an undetermined size that is covered by ice that is 400 meters (1,300 feet) thick.

7. Antarctica has its Treaty

The Antarctic Treaty, an unusual international pact to rule the continent jointly as a reserve for peace and research, was signed by 12 nations in December 1959. Since then, the Treaty has been ratified by 41 more nations, who also take part in yearly conferences where management decisions on human activities in Antarctica are decided. Within the Antarctic Treaty System, all decisions are reached by consensus, with cooperation and agreement serving as the two main tenets.

In 1964, the first worldwide pact to save Antarctica’s wildlife was approved. Regulations on fishing were put in place as a result of the overfishing of krill, an animal that is important to the ecology of Antarctica.

8. Antarctica is a Desert

Photo by Cassie Matias on Unsplash

How could Antarctica be a desert when there is so much freshwater stored in the ice sheet? It is frequently referred to as the “frozen dessert” since Antarctica is the driest continent. It’s officially a desert, even though there is a thick layer of ice covering it, due to the extraordinarily low amount of precipitation that it receives. Yet, legally a desert doesn’t have to be hot or sandy; rather, it depends on how much precipitation the region receives in the form of rain, snow, mist, or fog. When most people think of deserts, they picture dunes and scorching temperatures. Any area that receives relatively little precipitation each year is considered a desert.

Very low temperatures and the continent’s geographic position are responsible for the minimal precipitation. Because of how cold the continent is, the majority of the air’s moisture freezes, resulting in small, dry snowflakes even when it does snow.

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9. The Continect has a Geographic Feature Hidden under the Ice Sheet

Studying this continent is intriguing. Under the ice sheet in Antarctica is a lake. One of the biggest subglacial lakes known to exist is a freshwater lake called Lake Vostok. The lake’s dimensions are reported to be 250 km (160 miles) long, 50 km (30 miles) broad, and more than 500 m (1,600 ft) deep.

The lake’s water is reported to be among the purest and old on Earth, having been isolated from the surface for millions of years. Since the lake could feature unique life forms that have developed in seclusion from the rest of the globe, scientists are particularly interested in it.

10.1,150 Species of Fungi have been Recorded in the Antarctic Region

Photo by Derek Oyen on Unsplash

The Antarctic area has been home to roughly 1,150 different kinds of fungus, of which 750 do not produce lichen. As a result of their adaptation to harsh environments, some of the species have colonized structural voids within porous rocks and helped mold the rock formations of the McMurdo Dry Valleys and the nearby mountain crest.

Several of these fungi have evolved to withstand harsh cold and dry circumstances. For example, the capacity to make antifreeze proteins or to construct specific structures called cryoprotectants that shield their cells from freezing.

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11. Emile Marco Palma became the First Human ever to be Born in Antarctica

Argentine authorities sent Silvia Morella de Palma to Antarctica in 1977 while she was eight months pregnant. She was dispatched there to confirm their control over a chunk of the continent. Silvia’s son Emilio Marcos Palma became the first person to be born in Antarctica on January 7, 1978, according to records.

The birth of Emile was a pivotal moment in the history of Antarctic exploration, and since then, he has come to represent human adaptation and tenacity in harsh conditions. Now, a modest plaque honoring his birth can be located at the Esperanza Base, and Emile himself has developed a small following of individuals curious to learn about his unusual childhood and experiences growing up in one of the world’s most isolated locations.

12. Antarctica Used to be as Warm as Melbourne

According to scientists, some 90 million years ago, during the Late Cretaceous period, Antarctica saw a significant increase in temperature and a more moderate climate, comparable to that of present-day Melbourne, Australia. A wide variety of plant and animal species, including dinosaurs, reptiles, and marsupials, lived in Antarctica during that time since it was considerably more north and nearer the equator.

Antarctica was also covered in rich forests at the time. Plate tectonics and other geological processes over millions of years forced Antarctica to shift southward and chill considerably. This resulted in the formation of ice sheets and the development of the distinct polar ecosystem that exists today.

13. Sealers were among the Earliest to go Closer to the Antarctic Landmass

Photo by Rob Oo from NL. Wikimedia

Perhaps in the early 19th century, sealers were among the first to approach the Antarctic mainland closely. The earliest human remains discovered in the Antarctic was a young woman’s skull found on Yamana Beach in the South Shetland Islands, dating from 1819 to 1825. The lady was discovered in 1985, and she had probably been on a sealing trip.

14. Antarctica is Surrounded by Several Islands

Around Antarctica, there are many islands, most of which are volcanic and very young in terms of geology. The Kerguelen Plateau’s islands, the oldest of which originated approximately 40 Ma, are the most notable outliers to this rule.

A variety of animals, including penguins, seals, whales, and seabirds, make these islands and the surrounding seas home. They are a crucial component of the Antarctic ecosystem.

15. The only Continent without Reptiles in Antarctica

You need not be afraid of traveling to Antarctica if you are afraid of snakes. To maintain a stable body temperature, reptiles need external heat sources, which are extremely scarce in Antarctica’s chilly environment. Yet they can’t thrive here since the earth is perpetually frozen.

While there are no reptiles in Antarctica, the continent is nevertheless home to a wide variety of animals, including penguins, seals, whales, birds, and different marine invertebrates. These creatures have evolved special survival techniques to cope with the harsh circumstances of the continent, such as huddling together for warmth or diving deep into the icy seas to locate food.

In general, Antarctica is a special and significant continent that offers essential insights into the natural world and the consequences of human activities on the environment. Moreover, Antarctica is a singular and intriguing continent with a variety of remarkable traits and qualities. 

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