Things to Know
The fifth largest continent. On
this continent no people live.
Groups of scientists come for
periods of time to study this frigid land. Many countries operate
science stations in Antarctica, but no nation owns the land.
Antarctica has lots of animals in the sea -- whales, fish, krill
(small crustaceans like prawns), seals. The only land animals in
Antarctica are penguins and seals (and people). Antarctica
Animals.
The seasons in Antarctica are the
opposite of the seasons in the Northern hemisphere--summer is October
through February. Winter is March through September. The sun sets in
March and rises in October. For six months of the year, there are 24
hours of sunshine each day.
Antarctica is the coldest
continent. Antarctica is technically the world's largest desert. It
averages less than 4 mm of precipitation monthly, about the same as
the Sahara Desert. The reason that there is so much snow in
Antarctica is that the stuff never melts!
Only about two percent of
Antarctica is free of ice, severely limiting the places where plants
may grow. The flora of Antarctica is made up of lichen species, moss
(most found only on the Antarctic Peninsula), non-marine algae, and a
larger number of fungi and bacteria. Plants
of Antarctica
In the snow and surface ice snow
algae may be found coloring the snow red, green, yellow or gray
in summer.
Southern
Ocean
The Earth's oceans although
distinct are all connected to one another.
Until the year 2000, there were
four recognized oceans: the Pacific, Atlantic, Indian, and Arctic. In
the Spring of 2000, the International Hydrographic Organization
delimited a new ocean, The
Southern Ocean.
The
Southern Ocean surrounds Antarctica and extends to 60 degrees
latitude; and connects the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans and
is the world's fourth largest ocean.
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