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Q: What is the climate like?
This land-based continent is the highest, driest, coldest, windiest, and emptiest place on earth. An ice sheet covers approximately 98% of Antarctica's 14 million square kilometers. At its thickest point the ice sheet is 4,776 meters deep. This ice is approximately 90% of the entire world's ice (by volume) and is 70% of all the world's fresh water. There are many penguins and abundant sea life along the coast — but there is little life on the continent, and there are no indigenous peoples.
Q: What is the temperature in Antarctica?
The mean annual temperature at South Pole Station is minus 56°F. During the austral summer, temperatures at McMurdo Station may reach as high as 50°F, while at South Pole Station the summer temperature may reach 0°F. Palmer Station has a milder climate, with summer temperatures reaching as high as 55°F.
Q: Who owns Antarctica?
No nation owns Antarctica. The Antarctic Treaty, which has been signed by 45 countries, reserves the area south of 60 degrees south as a zone for the peaceful conduct of research. Treaty nations coordinate and cooperate to maximize research results and minimize logistics requirements.
Q: How big is Antarctica and where is it located?
The continent is roughly 14 million sq. kilometers (5.4 million sq. miles). The USA is smaller at 9.36 million sq. kilometers (3.6 million sq. miles).
The area of sea ice around Antarctica varies from 4 million sq. kilometers (1.0 million sq. miles) in summer to 20 million sq. kilometers (7.7 million sq. miles) in winter.
The distance from Washington, D.C., to McMurdo Station is approximately 14,830 kilometers (9,920 miles).
Q: What type of science is studied in Antarctica?
Antarctica provides excellent conditions for scientific research on such topics as global warming, ozone changes, climatology, earth sciences, glaciology, astronomy, UV radiation, oceanic circulation, marine ecosystems, meteorite studies, etc.
Q: Why is Antarctica a good place to find meteorites?
Meteorites can be found all over the planet but are often camouflaged by vegetation and earth. In Antarctica they are easier to see against the white expanse of ice and snow. In several places, ice sheet movement transports meteorites into deposits them in convenient clusters.
Q: Is it true, that the weather conditions in Antarctica are similar to those on Mars?
Yes. The cold and dry conditions in the “Dry Valleys” region of Antarctica are so close to those on Mars that NASA did testing there for the Viking mission. It has not rained in the dry valleys for at least 2 million years.
Q: What is the history of Antarctica?
The existence of Antarctica was only hypothesis until it is was first sighted in 1820-21. No one set foot on the continent until 1895. The South Pole was first reached in 1911 and established as a year-round research station in 1956. Antarctica's history is packed full of extraordinary stories of heroism and survival.
Q: Why is Antarctica a desert?
A desert is defined as a region that has less than 254 mm (10 in) of annual rainfall or precipitation. Antarctica can be classified as a desert by this definition. Unlike other deserts, there is little evaporation from Antarctica, so the relatively little snow that does fall, doesn't go away again. Instead it builds up over hundreds and thousands of years into enormously thick ice sheets.
