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Antarctica
Background :
Speculation over the existence of a "southern land" was not confirmed until the early 1820s when British and American commercial operators and British and Russian national expeditions began exploring the Antarctic Peninsula region and other areas south of the Antarctic Circle. Not until 1840 was it established that Antarctica was indeed a continent and not just a group of islands. Several exploration "firsts" were achieved in the early 20th century. Following World War II, there was an upsurge in scientific research on the continent. A number of countries have set up a range of year-round and seasonal stations, camps, and refuges to support scientific research in Antarctica. Seven have made territorial claims, but not all countries recognize these claims. In order to form a legal framework for the activities of nations on the continent, an Antarctic Treaty was negotiated that neither denies nor gives recognition to existing territorial claims; signed in 1959, it entered into force in 1961.
Location :
continent mostly south of the Antarctic Circle
Geographic Coordinates Center :
90 00 S, 0 00 E (Latitude, Longtitude)
Geographic Coordinates Rectangle :
| West | -180.00 |
| North | -60.52 |
| East | 180.00 |
| South | -90.00 |
Map references :
Other Regions
Area :
| total | 14 000 000 | square km |
| land | 14 000 000 | square km |
Coastline :
17968.00 km
Climate :
severe low temperatures vary with latitude, elevation, and distance from the ocean; East Antarctica is colder than West Antarctica because of its higher elevation; Antarctic Peninsula has the most moderate climate; higher temperatures occur in January along the coast and average slightly below freezing
Terrain :
about 98% thick continental ice sheet and 2% barren rock, with average elevations between 2,000 and 4,000 meters; mountain ranges up to nearly 5,000 meters; ice-free coastal areas include parts of southern Victoria Land, Wilkes Land, the Antarctic Peninsula area, and parts of Ross Island on McMurdo Sound; glaciers form ice shelves along about half of the coastline, and floating ice shelves constitute 11% of the area of the continent
Elevation extremes :
| lowest point | 2 540 | metres |
| highest point | 4 897 | metres |
Land use :
| arable land | 0.00 | % |
| permanent crops | 0.00 | % |
| other | 100.00 | % |
Natural hazards :
| cyclonic storms | frequent blizzards |
| large icebergs | seismic activity |
current issues :
in 1998, SA satellite data showed that the Antarctic ozone hole was the largest on record, covering 27 million square kilometers; researchers in 1997 found that increased ultraviolet light passing through the hole damages the D of icefish, an Antarctic fish lacking hemoglobin; ozone depletion earlier was shown to harm one-celled Antarctic marine plants; in 2002, significant areas of ice shelves disintegrated in response to regional warming
Country name :
| conventional short form | Antarctica |
Country Codes :
| ISO 3166 | AQ |
| ISO Numeric | 10 |
| ISO3 | ATA |
| FIPS | AY |
| ccTLD | aq |
| English | Antarctica |
Communications :
| FM Radio broadcast stations | 2 | |
| Television broadcast stations | 1 | |
| Internet Country code (ccTLD) | aq | |
| Internet Hosts | 7 758 |
Transportation :
| Heliports | 53 |
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