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{{Short description|Earth's southernmost continent}}
{{featured article}}
{{About|the continent|the region|Antarctic|other uses}}
{{otheruses}}
{{Redirect|Antipodea|Australia and New Zealand|Australasia}}
{| border=1 align=right cellpadding=4 cellspacing=0 width=250 style="margin: 0 0 1em 1em; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaaaaa solid; border-collapse: collapse; font-size: 95%;"
{{Featured article}}
|+<big><big>'''Antarctica'''</big></big>
{{Pp-vandalism|small=yes}}
| align=center colspan=2 style="background:#f9f9f9;" |
{{Pp-move}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2023}}
{{Use British English|date=March 2017}}
{{Infobox continent
| title = Antarctica
| image = Antarctica (orthographic projection).svg <!-- Please see discussion or contribute to discussion if you are considering replacing this image -->
| image_size = 240px
| alt = This map uses an orthographic projection, near-polar aspect. The South Pole is near the center, where longitudinal lines converge.
| flag = True_South_Antarctic_Flag.svg
| area = {{cvt|14200000|km2|disp=br}}<ref name="CIAfactbook-People">{{cite web |title=Antarctica |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/antarctica/ |website=The World Factbook |publisher=] |access-date=9 May 2022 |archive-date=9 May 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220509192134/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/antarctica/ |date=3 May 2022}}</ref>
| population = 1,300 to 5,100 (seasonal)
| density = 0.00009/km<sup>2</sup> to 0.00036/km<sup>2</sup> (seasonal)
| adjective = ]
| countries =7 territorial claims
| list_countries =Antarctic Treaty System
| time =All time zones
| internet = ]
| iso_code = AQ
| settlements = {{Ubl|]|]}}
| m49 = <code>010</code>
}}
]
] photograph with Antarctica at top, 1967]]


'''Antarctica''' ({{IPAc-en|audio=en-us-Antarctica.ogg|æ|n|ˈ|t|ɑːr|k|t|ᵻ|k|ə}}){{refn|The word was originally pronounced with the first ''c'' silent in English, but the ] has become common and is often considered more correct. However, the pronunciation with a silent ''c'', and even with the first ''t'' silent as well, is widespread and typical of many similar English words.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151208004718/https://www.ahdictionary.com/word/search.html?q=Antarctica |date=8 December 2015 }}. '']''.</ref> The ''c'' had ceased to be pronounced in ] and was dropped from the spelling in ], but it was added back for etymological reasons in English in the 17th century and thereafter began to be pronounced, but (as with other spelling pronunciations) at first only by less educated people.<ref>{{harvnb |Crystal|2006|page=172}}</ref> For those who pronounce the first ''t'', there is also variation between the pronunciations ''Ant-ar(c)tica'' and ''An-tar(c)tica''.|group="note"}} is ]'s southernmost and least-populated ]. Situated almost entirely south of the ] and surrounded by the ] (also known as the ]), it contains the geographic ]. Antarctica is the fifth-largest continent, being about 40% larger than ], and has an area of {{convert|14200000|km2|abbr=on}}. Most of Antarctica is covered by the ], with an average thickness of {{convert|1.9|km|mi|abbr=on}}.
]
|-
| ''']''' || 14,000,000&nbsp;km² (5,405,430&nbsp;mi²) (280,000&nbsp;km² (108,108&nbsp;mi²) ice-free, 13,720,000&nbsp;km² (5,297,321&nbsp;mi²) ice-covered)
|-
| ''']''' || ~1000 (none permanent)
|-
| ''']''' <br><br>– ]
|| governed by the ]<br><br>]
|-
| ''']''' (subject to the ]) || {{ARG}} <br> {{AUS}} <br> {{CHL}} <br> {{FRA}} <br> {{NZL}} <br> {{NOR}} <br> {{GBR}}
|-
| '''Reserved the right to make claims''' || {{RUS}} <br> {{USA}}
|-
| '''Internet ]''' || ]
|-
| '''Calling Code''' || +672
|}


Antarctica is, on average, the coldest, driest, and windiest of the continents, and it has the highest average ]. It is mainly a ], with annual ] of over {{convert|200|mm|in|0|abbr=on}} along the coast and far less inland. About 70% of the world's ] reserves are frozen in Antarctica, which, if melted, would raise global ]s by almost {{convert|60|m|ft}}. Antarctica holds the record for the ], {{cvt|−89.2|C}}. The coastal regions can reach temperatures over {{cvt|10|C}} in the summer. Native ] include ]s, ]s, ]s, ] and ]s. Where ] occurs, it is mostly in the form of ] or ].
]


The ] were probably first seen in 1820, during ] led by ] and ]. The decades that followed saw further ] by French, American, and British expeditions. The first confirmed landing was by a Norwegian team in 1895. In the early 20th century, there were a few expeditions into the interior of the continent. ] ] and ] were the first to reach the ] in 1909, and the ] was first reached in 1911 by ] ].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Smith |first=Cynthia |date=2021-09-21 |title=Reaching the South Pole During the Heroic Age of Exploration {{!}} Worlds Revealed |url=https://blogs.loc.gov/maps/2021/09/reaching-the-south-pole-during-the-heroic-age-of-exploration |access-date=2024-04-17 |website=The Library of Congress}}</ref>
'''Antarctica''' is ]'s southernmost ], overlying the ]. Situated in the ] and largely south of the ], Antarctica is surrounded by the ]. At 14.4 million&nbsp;km², it is the fifth-largest continent in area after ], ], ], and ]; in turn, ] and ] are smaller. Some 98% of Antarctica it is covered by ], which averages at least 1.6 km in thickness.


Antarctica is ], all of which are parties of the 1959 ]. According to the terms of the treaty, military activity, mining, ]s, and ] are all prohibited in Antarctica. ], fishing and research are the main human activities in and around Antarctica. During the summer months, about 5,000 people reside at ], a figure that drops to around 1,000 in the winter. Despite the continent's remoteness, human activity has a significant effect on it via ], ], and ]. The melting of the potentially unstable ] causes the most uncertainty in century-scale projections of ], and the same melting also affects the ], which can eventually lead to significant impacts on the ] climate and Southern Ocean productivity.
On average, Antarctica is the coldest, driest and windiest continent, and has the highest average ] of all the continents.<ref>{{cite web | title=National Geophysical Data Center | publisher=National Satellite, Data, and Information Service| url=http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/mgg/image/2minrelief.html | accessmonthday=9 June |accessyear=2006}}</ref> Since there is little ], except at the coasts, the interior of the continent is technically the largest ] in the world. There are no permanent human residents and Antarctica has never had an indigenous population. Only cold-adapted plants and animals survive there, including ]s, ], ]es, ]s, and many types of ].


== Etymology ==
The name ''Antarctica'' comes from the ] ''antarktikos'' (''ανταρκτικός''), meaning "opposite to the ]."<ref>{{cite web|author=] and ]|work=] | publisher=Clarendon Press | title={{polytonic|ἀνταρκτικός}} | year=1940 | url=http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0057:entry=%239514 | accessdate=12 February | accessyear=2006}}</ref> Although myths and speculation about a '']'' ("Southern Land") date back to antiquity, the first confirmed sighting of the continent is commonly accepted to have occurred in ] by the ]n expedition of ] and ]. However, the continent remained largely neglected for the rest of the 19th century because of its hostile environment, lack of resources, and isolated location.


]'s ''{{lang|nl|Zeekaart van het Zuidpoolgebied}}'' (1657), {{Lang|nl|]|italic=no}}]]
The ] was signed in 1959 by twelve countries. To date, forty-five countries have signed the treaty, including the United States. The treaty prohibits military activities and mineral mining, supports scientific research, and protects the continent's ]. Ongoing experiments are conducted by more than 4,000 scientists of many nationalities and with different research interests.<ref name="cia">{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/ay.html#People|title=Antarctica - The World Factbook|publisher=United States Central Intelligence Agency|date=2007-03-08|accessdate=2007-03-14}}</ref>
The name given to the continent ] from the word ''antarctic'', which comes from ] ''{{lang|frm|antartique}}'' or ''{{lang|frm|antarctique}}'' ('opposite to the ]') and, in turn, the ] ''{{lang|la|antarcticus}}'' ('opposite to the north'). ''{{lang|la|Antarcticus}}'' is derived from the ] {{lang|grc|ἀντι-}} ('anti-') and {{lang|grc|ἀρκτικός}} ('of ]', 'northern').<ref name="OED">{{Cite OED|Antarctic|access-date=17 January 2022|edition=3rd|date=December 2021}}</ref> The Greek philosopher ] wrote in '']'' about an "Antarctic region" in {{circa|350 BCE}}.{{sfn|Lettinck|2021|p=158}} The Greek geographer ] reportedly used the name in his world map from the second century CE, now lost. The ] authors ] and ] used for the South Pole the ] Greek name {{Lang|el-latn|polus antarcticus}},{{sfn|Hyginus|1992|p=176}} from which derived the ] {{Lang|ang|pole antartike}} (modern {{Lang|fr|pôle antarctique}}) attested in 1270, and from there the ] {{Lang|enm|pol antartik}}, found first in a ] written by the English author ].<ref name="OED" />


Belief by Europeans in the existence of a ''{{lang|la|]}}''—a vast continent in the far south of the globe to balance the northern lands of Europe, Asia, and North Africa—had existed as an intellectual concept since ]. The belief in such a land lasted until the European ].{{sfn|Scott|Hiatt|McIlroy|2012|pp=2{{ndash}}3}}
==History==
{{main|History of Antarctica}}


During the early 19th century, explorer ] doubted the existence of a detached continent south of Australia (then called ]) and thus advocated for the "Terra Australis" name to be used for Australia instead.{{sfn|Cawley|2015|p=130}}{{sfn|McCrone|McPherson|2009|p=75}} In 1824, the colonial authorities in ] officially renamed the continent of New Holland to Australia, leaving the term "Terra Australis" unavailable as a reference to Antarctica. Over the following decades, geographers used phrases such as "the Antarctic Continent". They searched for a more poetic replacement, suggesting names such as ''Ultima'' and ''Antipodea''.{{sfn|Cameron-Ash|2018|p=20}} ''Antarctica'' was adopted in the 1890s, with the first use of the name being attributed to the Scottish ] ].<ref name="NLS">{{cite web |title=Highlights from the Bartholomew Archive: The naming of Antarctica |url=https://digital.nls.uk/bartholomew/highlights/antarctica.html#:~:text=Edinburgh%20geographer%20and%20mapmaker%20John,since%20the%20first%20century%20AD. |website=The Bartholomew Archive |publisher=] |access-date=23 February 2022 |archive-date=18 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220218073511/https://digital.nls.uk/bartholomew/highlights/antarctica.html#:~:text=Edinburgh%20geographer%20and%20mapmaker%20John,since%20the%20first%20century%20AD. |url-status=live }}</ref>
Belief in the existence of a ''Terra Australis''&mdash;a vast continent located in the far south of the globe to "balance" the northern lands of Europe, Asia and north Africa&mdash;had existed since the times of ] (first century CE), who suggested the idea in order to preserve the ] of all known ]es in the world. Depictions of a large southern landmass were common in maps such as the early 16th century Turkish ]. Even in the late 17th century, after explorers had found that ] and ] were not part of the fabled "Antarctica," geographers believed that the continent was much larger than its actual size.
]
European maps continued to show this hypothetical land until Captain ]'s ships, ] and '']'', crossed the ] on ], ], and once again in 1774.<ref>{{cite web | author=The Mariners' Museum | title=Age of Exploration: John Cook | url=http://www.mariner.org/educationalad/ageofex/cook.php | accessmonthday=12 February | accessyear=2006}}</ref> The first confirmed sighting of Antarctica can be narrowed down to the crews of ships captained by three individuals. According to various organizations (the ]<ref>{{cite web | author=U.S. Antarctic Program External Panel of the ] | title=Antarctica&mdash;Past and Present|url=http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/1997/antpanel/antpan05.pdf|accessmonthday=6 February |accessyear=2006}}</ref>, ]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/antarctica/background/NSF/palmer.html|title=NATHANIEL BROWN PALMER, 1799-1877|publisher=NASA, U.S. Government|author=Guy G. Guthridge|accessdate=2006-02-06}}</ref>, the ]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://arcane.ucsd.edu/pstat.html|title=Palmer Station|accessdate=2006-02-05}}</ref>, and other sources<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.south-pole.com/p0000052.htm|title=An Antarctic Time Line : 1519-1959|publisher=south-pole.com|accessdate=2006-02-12}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://ku-prism.org/polarscientist/timeline/antarcticexplorers1800.html|title=Antarctic Explorers Timeline: Early 1800s|accessdate=2006-02-12}}</ref>), ships captained by three men sighted Antarctica in 1820: ] (a captain in the ]), ] (a captain in the ]), and ] (an American ] out of ]). Von Bellingshausen supposedly saw Antarctica on ], ], three days before Bransfield sighted land, and ten months before Palmer did so in November 1820. On that day the two-ship expedition led by Von Bellingshausen and ] reached a point within 32&nbsp;km (20&nbsp;miles) of the Antarctic mainland and saw ice fields there. The first documented landing on mainland Antarctica was by the American ] ] in ] on February 7, ], although some historians dispute this claim.
In December ], as part of the ] of 1838 &ndash; 1842 (conducted by the ]) (sometimes called the "Ex. Ex.", or "the Wilkes Expedition"), the expedition sailed from ], ] into the ], as it was then known, and reported the discovery "of an ] west of the ]." That part of Antarctica was later named "]," a name it maintains to this day.


Antarctica has also been known by the moniker ''Great White South'', after which British photographer ] named one of his books on Antarctic photography, possibly as a counterpart to the epithet ''Great White North'' for ].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2012/06/16/in-person-adventurer-set-to-tackle-the-great-white-south/ |title=IN PERSON: Adventurer set to tackle the great white south |last= |first= |date= 16 June 2012|publisher= |access-date=9 September 2024 |quote=}}</ref>
In 1841, explorer ] passed through what is now known as the ] and discovered ] (both of which were named for him). He sailed along a huge wall of ice that was later named the ] (also named for him). ] and ] are named after two ships from his expedition: ] and '']''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.south-pole.com/p0000081.htm|title=South-Pole - Exploring Antarctica|accessdate=2006-02-12|publisher=south-pole.com}}</ref> ] landed in ] on January 26, 1853.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.antarctic-circle.org/firsts.htm|title=Antarctic Circle - Antarctic First|date=2005-02-09|accessdate=2006-02-12}}</ref>
]'s ] in 1914.]]
During an ] led by ] in ], parties led by ] became the first to climb ] and to reach the ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aad.gov.au/default.asp?casid=6660|title=''Tannatt William Edgeworth David''|publisher=Australian Government Antarctic Division|accessdate=2006-02-07}}</ref> In addition, Shackleton himself and three other members of his expedition made several firsts in December 1908 &ndash; February 1909: they were the first humans to traverse the ], the first to traverse the Transantarctic Mountain Range (via the ]), and the first to set foot on the South Polar Plateau. On ], ], a party led by Norwegian polar explorer ] from the ship '']'' became the first to reach the geographic ], using a route from the ] and up the ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.south-pole.com/p0000101.htm|title=''Roald Amundsen''|publisher=south-pole.com|accessdate=2006-02-09}}</ref> One month later, the ill-fated ] reached the pole.


== Geography ==
] led several voyages to the Antarctic by plane in the 1930s and 1940s. He is credited with implementing mechanized land transport on the continent and conducting extensive geological and biological research.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.70south.com/resources/antarctic-history/explorers/richardbyrd|title=Richard Byrd|publisher=70South.com|accessdate=2006-02-12}}</ref> However, it was not until ], ] that anyone set foot on the South Pole again; on that day a U.S. Navy group led by Rear Admiral ] successfully landed an aircraft there.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.history.navy.mil/wars/datesoct.htm|title=Dates in American Naval History: October|publisher=U.S. Navy|accessdate=2006-02-12}}</ref>
{{Main|Geography of Antarctica}}
{{See also|Extreme points of Antarctica|List of mountains in Antarctica|List of ultras of Antarctica|List of places in Antarctica}}
] is to the right of the ] and ] is to the left.]]


Positioned asymmetrically around the South Pole and largely south of the ] (one of the five major ] that mark maps of the world), Antarctica is surrounded by the ].{{refn|1=Before the ] was recognised as a separate ocean, it was considered to be surrounded by the southern ], ], and ]s.<ref>{{cite web |first1= |title=How many oceans are there? |url=https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/howmanyoceans.html |website=National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration |language=EN-US |access-date=11 May 2022 |archive-date=20 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230820210308/https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/howmanyoceans.html |url-status=live }}</ref>|group=note}} ] exist in Antarctica; the longest is the ]. Antarctica covers more than {{convert|14.2|e6km2|sqmi|abbr=unit}}, almost double the area of Australia, making it the fifth-largest continent, and comparable to the surface area of ]. Its coastline is almost {{convert|18000|km|mi|-2|abbr=on}} long:<ref name="CIAfactbook-People" /> {{As of|1983|lc=y}}, of the four coastal types, 44% of the coast is floating ice in the form of an ], 38% consists of ice walls that rest on rock, 13% is ]s or the edge of glaciers, and the remaining 5% is exposed rock.{{sfn|Drewry|1983<!-- |p= -->}}<!-- {{Update inline|reason=Does this still hold after so many years?|?=yes|date=January 2022}} No updated information available, recent sources still quote the 1983 figures-->
<!--The formatting below clears up formatting issues experienced by users with high-resolution monitors. Please do not remove-->
<br style="clear:both;">


The ] that lie at the base of the continental ] occur mainly in the ] or various ].{{sfn|Trewby|2002|p=115}} ], discovered beneath Russia's ], is the largest ] globally and one of the largest lakes in the world. It was once believed that the lake had been sealed off for millions of years, but scientists now estimate its water is replaced by the slow melting and freezing of ice caps every 13,000 years.{{sfn|Day|2019|loc=Is all of Antarctica snow-covered?}} During the summer, the ice at the edges of the lakes can melt, and liquid moats temporarily form. Antarctica has both ] and freshwater lakes.{{sfn|Trewby|2002|p=115}}
==Geography==
{{Main|Geography of Antarctica}}
]
]
]
Centered asymmetrically around the ] and largely south of the ], Antarctica is the ]ernmost continent and is surrounded by the southern waters of the ]. Alternatively (depending on source), it is washed by the ] or the southern ], ], and ]s. It covers more than 14 million&nbsp;km², making it the fifth-largest continent, about 1.3 times larger than ]. The coastline measures 17,968&nbsp;km (11,160&nbsp;miles) and is mostly characterized by ] formations, as the following table shows:
{| class="wikitable"
|+ '''Coastal types around Antarctica (Drewry, 1983)'''
|-
! Type !! Frequency
|-
| ] (floating ice front)
|align=right| 44%
|-
| Ice walls (resting on ground)
|align=right| 38%
|-
| Ice stream/outlet glacier (ice front or ice wall)
|align=right| 13%
|-
| Rock
|align=right| 4%
|-
! Total
|align=right| 100%
|}


Antarctica is divided into ] and ] by the ], which stretch from ] to the ].{{sfn|Carroll|Lopes|2019|p=99}}<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Ji |first1=Fei |last2=Gao |first2=Jinyao |last3=Li |first3=Fei |last4=Shen |first4=Zhongyan |last5=Zhang |first5=Qiao |last6=Li |first6=Yongdong |title=Variations of the effective elastic thickness over the Ross Sea and Transantarctic Mountains and implications for their structure and tectonics |journal=Tectonophysics |date=2017 |volume=717 |pages=127–138 |doi=10.1016/j.tecto.2017.07.011 |bibcode=2017Tectp.717..127J |doi-access=free |issn = 0040-1951}}</ref> The vast majority of Antarctica is covered by the ], which averages {{convert|1.9|km|mi|abbr=on}} in thickness.<ref name="Bedmap2">{{cite journal |last1=Fretwell |first1=P. |last2=Pritchard |first2=H. D. |last3=Vaughan |first3=D. G. |last4=Bamber |first4=J. L. |last5=Barrand |first5=N. E. |last6=Bell |first6=R. |last7=Bianchi |first7=C. |last8=Bingham |first8=R. G. |last9=Blankenship |first9=D. D. |last10=Casassa |first10=G. |last11=Catania |first11=G. |last12=Callens |first12=D. |last13=Conway |first13=H. |last14=Cook |first14=A. J. |last15=Corr |first15=H. F. J. |last16=Damaske |first16=D. |last17=Damm |first17=V. |last18=Ferraccioli |first18=F. |last19=Forsberg |first19=R. |last20=Fujita |first20=S. |last21=Gim |first21=Y. |last22=Gogineni |first22=P. |last23=Griggs |first23=J. A. |last24=Hindmarsh |first24=R. C. A. |last25=Holmlund |first25=P. |last26=Holt |first26=J. W. |last27=Jacobel |first27=R. W. |last28=Jenkins |first28=A. |last29=Jokat |first29=W. |last30=Jordan |first30=T. |last31=King |first31=E. C. |last32=Kohler |first32=J. |last33=Krabill |first33=W. |last34=Riger-Kusk |first34=M. |last35=Langley |first35=K. A. |last36=Leitchenkov |first36=G. |last37=Leuschen |first37=C. |last38=Luyendyk |first38=B. P. |last39=Matsuoka |first39=K. |last40=Mouginot |first40=J. |last41=Nitsche |first41=F. O. |last42=Nogi |first42=Y. |last43=Nost |first43=O. A. |last44=Popov |first44=S. V. |last45=Rignot |first45=E. |last46=Rippin |first46=D. M. |last47=Rivera |first47=A. |last48=Roberts |first48=J. |last49=Ross |first49=N. |last50=Siegert |first50=M. J. |last51=Smith |first51=A. M. |last52=Steinhage |first52=D. |last53=Studinger |first53=M. |last54=Sun |first54=B. |last55=Tinto |first55=B. K. |last56=Welch |first56=B. C. |last57=Wilson |first57=D. |last58=Young |first58=D. A. |last59=Xiangbin |first59=C. |last60=Zirizzotti |first60=A. |title=Bedmap2: improved ice bed, surface and thickness datasets for Antarctica |journal=The Cryosphere |date=28 February 2013 |volume=7 |issue=1 |pages=375–393 |doi=10.5194/tc-7-375-2013 |bibcode=2013TCry....7..375F |s2cid=13129041 |doi-access=free |hdl=1808/18763 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> The ice sheet extends to all but a few ], which, with the exception of the McMurdo Dry Valleys, are located in coastal areas.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://antarcticsun.usap.gov/science/4184/|title=The Lost Dry Valleys of the Polar Plateau|website=The Antarctic Sun|publisher=]|last1=Lucibella|first1=Michael|date=21 October 2015|access-date=16 January 2022|archive-date=15 January 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220115223943/https://antarcticsun.usap.gov/science/4184/|url-status=live}}</ref> Several Antarctic ice streams flow to one of the many ], a process described by ].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.gfdl.noaa.gov/ice-sheet-dynamics/|title=Ice Sheet Dynamics|website=Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory|last1=Hallberg|first1=Robert|last2=Sergienko|first2=Olga|year=2019|access-date=7 February 2021|archive-date=28 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210428015203/https://www.gfdl.noaa.gov/ice-sheet-dynamics/|url-status=live}}</ref>
Antarctica is divided in two by the ] close to the neck between the ] and the ]. The portion west of the Weddell Sea and east of the Ross Sea is called ] and the remainder ], because they roughly correspond to the Western and Eastern Hemispheres relative to the ].


] from the northwest, the highest peak in Antarctica]]
About 98% of Antarctica is covered by the ], a ] of ice averaging at least 1.6&nbsp;km (1.0&nbsp;mi) thick. The continent has approximately 90% of the world's ice (and thereby approximately 70% of the world's ]). If all of this ice were melted, sea levels would rise about 61 m (200 feet).<ref name="howstuffworks">{{cite web|url=http://science.howstuffworks.com/question473.htm|title=How Stuff Works: polar ice caps|publisher=howstuffworks.com|accessdate=2006-02-12}}</ref> In most of the interior of the continent ] is very low, down to 20 mm/year; in a few "]" areas precipitation is lower than mass loss by ] and so the local mass balance is negative. In the dry valleys the same effect occurs over a rock base, leading to a desiccated landscape.


East Antarctica comprises ], ], ], ], ], and Victoria Land. All but a small portion of the region lies within the ]. East Antarctica is largely covered by the ].{{sfn|Siegert|Florindo|2008|p=532}} There are numerous ] surrounding Antarctica, most of which are volcanic and very young by geological standards.<ref name=O&E>{{cite journal |last1=Quilty |first1=Pg |title=Origin and evolution of the sub-Antarctic islands: the foundation |journal=Papers and Proceedings of the Royal Society of Tasmania |date=2007 |pages=35–58 |doi=10.26749/rstpp.141.1.35 }}</ref> The most prominent exceptions to this are the islands of the ], the earliest of which formed around 40 ].<ref name=O&E/><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Olierook |first1=Hugo K.H. |last2=Jourdan |first2=Fred |last3=Merle |first3=Renaud E. |last4=Timms |first4=Nicholas E. |last5=Kusznir |first5=Nick |last6=Muhling |first6=Janet R. |title=Bunbury Basalt: Gondwana breakup products or earliest vestiges of the Kerguelen mantle plume? |journal=Earth and Planetary Science Letters |date=April 2016 |volume=440 |pages=20–32 |doi=10.1016/j.epsl.2016.02.008 |bibcode=2016E&PSL.440...20O |doi-access=free |hdl=20.500.11937/13606 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>
Western Antarctica is covered by the ]. The sheet has been of recent concern because of the real, if small, possibility of its collapse. If the sheet were to break down, ] would rise by several meters in a relatively ] period of time, perhaps a matter of centuries. Several Antarctic ]s, which account for about 10% of the ice sheet, flow to one of the many ].


], in the ], is the highest peak in Antarctica at {{convert|4892|m|ft|0|abbr=on}}.{{sfn|Monteath |1997|p=135}} Mount Erebus on ] is the world's southernmost active ] and ] around 10 times each day. Ash from eruptions has been found {{convert|300|km}} from the ].{{sfn|Trewby|2002|p=75}} There is evidence of a large number of volcanoes under the ice, which could pose a risk to the ice sheet if activity levels were to rise.{{Sfn|Carroll|Lopes|2019|p=38}} The ice dome known as ] in East Antarctica is the highest Antarctic ice feature, at {{convert|4091|m}}. It is one of the world's coldest and driest places—temperatures there may reach as low as {{convert|-90|C}}, and the annual precipitation is {{cvt|1|-|3|cm}}.{{sfn|Hund|2014|pp=362{{ndash}}363}}
], an active volcano on ].]]
], the highest peak in Antarctica at 4892&nbsp;meters (16,050&nbsp;feet), is located in the ]. Although Antarctica is home to many volcanoes, only ] is known to be active. Located on ], Erebus is the southernmost active volcano. There is another famous volcano called ], which is famous for its giant eruption in ]. Minor eruptions are frequent and lava flow has been observed in recent years. Other dormant volcanoes may potentially be active.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.antarctica.ac.uk/About_Antarctica/Rock/Volcanoes.html|title=Volcanoes|publisher=British Antarctic Survey|accessdate=2006-02-13}}</ref> In 2004, an underwater volcano was found in the ] by American and Canadian researchers. Recent evidence shows this unnamed volcano may be active.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=100385|title=Scientists Discover Undersea Volcano Off Antarctica|publisher=United States National Science Foundation|accessdate=2006-02-13}}</ref>


== Geologic history ==
Antarctica is home to more than 70 ]s that lie thousands of meters under the surface of the continental ice sheet. ], discovered beneath ]'s ] in 1996, is the largest of these ]s. It is believed that the lake has been sealed off for 25 million years. There is some evidence, in the form of ]s drilled to about 400 m above the water line, that Vostok's waters may contain ]. The sealed, frozen surface of the lake shares similarities with ]'s moon ]. If life is discovered in Lake Vostok, this would strengthen the argument for the possibility of life on Europa.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nsf.gov/od/lpa/news/02/fslakevostok.htm|title=Lake Vostok|publisher=United States National Science Foundation|accessdate=2006-02-13}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://astrobiology.arc.nasa.gov/stories/europa_vostok_0899.html|title=Lake Vostok may teach us about Europa|publisher=NASA|accessdate=2006-02-04}}</ref>
{{Main|Geology of Antarctica}}{{Further|Geology of the Antarctic Peninsula}}
From the end of the ] era to the ], Antarctica was part of the ] ].<ref>{{cite book|page=109|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HcTrAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA109|title=Antarctic News Clips|year=1995|publisher=National Science Foundation|last1=Browne|first1=Malcolm W.|author-link1=Malcolm Browne|display-authors=et al|access-date=2 February 2021|archive-date=14 August 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230814152352/https://books.google.com/books?id=HcTrAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA109|url-status=live}}</ref> Modern Antarctica was formed as Gondwana gradually broke apart beginning around 183 Ma.{{sfn|Trewby|2002|p=92}} For a large proportion of the ], Antarctica had a ] or ], and it was covered in forests.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Klages |first1=Johann P. |last2=Salzmann |first2=Ulrich |last3=Bickert |first3=Torsten |last4=Hillenbrand |first4=Claus-Dieter |last5=Gohl |first5=Karsten |last6=Kuhn |first6=Gerhard |last7=Bohaty |first7=Steven M. |last8=Titschack |first8=Jürgen |last9=Müller |first9=Juliane |last10=Frederichs |first10=Thomas |last11=Bauersachs |first11=Thorsten |last12=Ehrmann |first12=Werner |last13=van de Flierdt |first13=Tina |last14=Pereira |first14=Patric Simões |last15=Larter |first15=Robert D. |last16=Lohmann |first16=Gerrit |last17=Niezgodzki |first17=Igor |last18=Uenzelmann-Neben |first18=Gabriele |last19=Zundel |first19=Maximilian |last20=Spiegel |first20=Cornelia |last21=Mark |first21=Chris |last22=Chew |first22=David |last23=Francis |first23=Jane E. |last24=Nehrke |first24=Gernot |last25=Schwarz |first25=Florian |last26=Smith |first26=James A. |last27=Freudenthal |first27=Tim |last28=Esper |first28=Oliver |last29=Pälike |first29=Heiko |last30=Ronge |first30=Thomas A. |last31=Dziadek |first31=Ricarda |title=Temperate rainforests near the South Pole during peak Cretaceous warmth |journal=Nature |date=2 April 2020 |volume=580 |issue=7801 |pages=81–86 |doi=10.1038/s41586-020-2148-5 |pmid=32238944 |bibcode=2020Natur.580...81K |s2cid=214736648 |hdl=10044/1/76835 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>


=== Paleozoic era (540–250 Ma) ===
{{seealso|Extreme points of Antarctica|Antarctic territories|List of Antarctic and sub-Antarctic islands}}


]'' sp. leaf from the Permian of Antarctica]]
==Geology==
{{Main|Geology of Antarctica}}
===Geological history and paleontology===
More than 170 million years ago, Antarctica was part of the ] ]. Over time, Gondwana gradually broke apart and Antarctica as we know it today was formed around 25 million years ago.
====Paleozoic era (540-250 Mya)====
]
During the Cambrian period, Gondwana had a mild climate. West Antarctica was partially in the northern hemisphere, and during this period large amounts of ]s, ]s and ]s were deposited. East Antarctica was at the equator, where sea-floor ]s and ]s flourished in the tropical seas. By the start of the Devonian period (416 ]), Gondwana was in more southern latitudes and the climate was cooler, though fossils of land plants are known from this time. ] and ]s were laid down in what is now the ], ] and ]. ] began at the end of the Devonian period (360 Mya), as Gondwana became centered around the ] and the climate cooled, though ] remained. During the Permian period, the plant life became dominated by ]-like plants such as '']'', which grew in swamps. Over time these swamps became deposits of coal in the ]. Towards the end of the Permian period, continued warming led to a dry, hot climate over much of Gondwana.<ref name="Stonehouse">{{cite book | editor = Stonehouse, B. (ed.) | title = Encyclopedia of Antarctica and the Southern Oceans | year = 2002 | month = June | publisher = John Wiley & Sons | id = ISBN 0-471-98665-8}}</ref>


During the ], Gondwana had a mild climate.{{sfn|Cantrill|Poole|2012|p=31}} West Antarctica was partially in the ], and during the time, large amounts of ]s, ]s, and ]s were deposited. East Antarctica was at the equator, where seafloor ]s and ]s flourished in the tropical seas. By the start of the ] (416&nbsp;]), Gondwana was in more southern latitudes, and the climate was cooler, though fossils of land plants are known from then. Sand and ]s were laid down in what is now the Ellsworth, ], and ].
====Mesozoic era (250-65 Mya)====
]
As a result of continued warming, the polar ice caps melted and much of Gondwana became a desert. In East Antarctica, the ] became established, and large amounts of sandstone and shale were laid down at this time. The Antarctic Peninsula began to form during the Jurassic period (206-146 Mya), and islands gradually rose out of the ocean. ] trees and ]s were plentiful during this period, as were reptiles such as '']''. In West Antarctica, ]ous ]s dominated through the entire Cretaceous period (146-65 Mya), though ] began to take over at the end of this period. ]s were common in the seas around Antarctica, and dinosaurs were also present, though only two Antarctic dinosaur species ('']'', from the ], and '']'') have been described to date. It was during this period that Gondwana began to break up.


Antarctica became glaciated during the ] beginning at the end of the Devonian period (360&nbsp;Ma), though glaciation would substantially increase during the late ]. It drifted closer to the South Pole, and the climate cooled, though ] remained.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Rolland |first1=Yann |last2=Bernet |first2=Matthias |last3=van der Beek |first3=Peter |last4=Gautheron |first4=Cécile |last5=Duclaux |first5=Guillaume |last6=Bascou |first6=Jérôme |last7=Balvay |first7=Mélanie |last8=Héraudet |first8=Laura |last9=Sue |first9=Christian |last10=Ménot |first10=René-Pierre |title=Late Paleozoic Ice Age glaciers shaped East Antarctica landscape |journal=Earth and Planetary Science Letters |date=January 2019 |volume=506 |pages=123–133 |doi=10.1016/j.epsl.2018.10.044 |bibcode=2019E&PSL.506..123R |s2cid=134360219 |url=https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01925658/file/papier_thermochro_Antarctique-EPSL.final.pdf }}</ref> After deglaciation during the latter half of the Early ], the land became dominated by ] (an extinct group of seed plants with no close living relatives), most prominently '']'', a tree interpreted as growing in waterlogged soils, which formed extensive coal deposits. Other plants found in Antarctica during the Permian include ], ]s, ferns, and ]s.{{sfn|Cantrill|Poole|2012|pp=57{{ndash}}104 |loc="Collapsing ice sheets and evolving polar forests of the middle to late Paleozoic"|ps=. {{doi|10.1017/cbo9781139024990.003}}}} At the end of the Permian, the climate became drier and hotter over much of Gondwana, and the ] forest ecosystems collapsed, as part of the ].{{sfn|Cantrill|Poole|2012|pp=57–104 |loc="Collapsing ice sheets and evolving polar forests of the middle to late Paleozoic"|ps=. {{doi|10.1017/cbo9781139024990.003}}}}<ref>{{cite book |chapter=Past changes on fauna and flora distribution |last1=Vega |first1=Greta |last2=Ángel Olalla-Tárraga |first2=Miguel |editor1-last=Oliva |editor1-first=Marc |editor2-last=Ruiz Fernandez |editor2-first=Jesus |title=Past Antarctica: paleoclimatology and climate change |date=2020 |location=London |publisher=Academic Press |isbn=978-0-12-817925-3 |page=170}}</ref> There is no evidence of any ]s having lived in Antarctica during the Paleozoic.<ref name="Collinson-2007">{{cite conference |last1=Collinson |first1=James |last2=William R. |first2=Hammer |date=2007 |title=Migration of Triassic tetrapods to Antarctica |conference=10th International Symposium on Antarctic Earth Sciences |url=https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2007/1047/ea/of2007-1047ea047.pdf }}</ref>
====Gondwana breakup (160-23 Mya)====
] separated from Antarctica around 160 Mya, followed by the ], in the early Cretaceous (about 125 Mya). About 65 Mya, Antarctica (then connected to ]) still had a tropical to subtropical climate, complete with a ] fauna. About 40 Mya ]-] separated from Antarctica and the first ice began to appear. Around 23 Mya, the ] opened between Antarctica and ], which resulted in the ]. The ice spread, replacing the forests that then covered the continent. Since about 15 Mya, the continent has been mostly covered with ice.<ref name="Trewby">{{cite book | editor = Trewby, Mary (ed.) | title = Antarctica: An Encyclopedia from Abbott Ice Shelf to Zooplankton | year = 2002 | month = September | publisher = Firefly Books | id = ISBN 1-55297-590-8}}</ref>


=== Mesozoic era (250–66 Ma) ===
===Geology of present-day Antarctica===
]
] Museum.]]
The geological study of Antarctica has been greatly hindered by the fact that nearly all of the continent is permanently covered with a thick layer of ice. However, new techniques such as ], ] and satellite imagery have begun to reveal the structures beneath the ice.


The continued warming dried out much of Gondwana. During the Triassic, Antarctica was dominated by ]s (pteridosperms) belonging to the genus '']'', which grew as trees. Other associated Triassic flora included ]s, ]ophytes, ]s, and sphenopsids.{{sfn|Cantrill|Poole|2012|pp=105{{ndash}}160 |loc="Icehouse to hothouse: floral turnover, the Permian–Triassic crisis and Triassic vegetation"|ps=. {{doi|10.1017/cbo9781139024990.004}}}} ]s first appeared in Antarctica during the early ], with the earliest known fossils found in the ] of the Transantarctic Mountains.<ref name="Collinson-2007" /> ]s (also known as "mammal-like reptiles") included species such as '']'', and were common during the ].{{sfn|Jasinoski|2013|p=139}}
Geologically, West Antarctica closely resembles the ] mountain range of ].<ref name="Stonehouse" /> The ] was formed by uplift and ] of sea-bed sediments during the late Paleozoic and the early Mesozoic eras. This sediment uplift was accompanied by ] intrusions and ]. The most common rocks in West Antarctica are ] and ] volcanics formed during the Jurassic period. There is also evidence of volcanic activity, even after the ice sheet had formed, in ] and ]. The only anomalous area of West Antarctica is the ] region, where the ] is more similar to the eastern part of the continent.


The ] began to form during the ] period ({{Ma|206|146}}).<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Birkenmajer |first1=K. |title=Evolution of the Pacific margin of the northern Antarctic Peninsula: an overview |journal=Geologische Rundschau |date=July 1994 |volume=83 |issue=2 |pages=309–321 |doi=10.1007/BF00210547 |bibcode=1994GeoRu..83..309B }}</ref> Africa separated from Antarctica in the Jurassic around 160 Ma, followed by the ] in the early Cretaceous (about 125&nbsp;Ma).<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Gaina |first1=Carmen |last2=Müller |first2=R. Dietmar |last3=Brown |first3=Belinda |last4=Ishihara |first4=Takemi |last5=Ivanov |first5=Sergey |author-link=-Carmen Gaina |date=July 2007 |title=Breakup and early seafloor spreading between India and Antarctica |journal=Geophysical Journal International |language=en |volume=170 |issue=1 |pages=151–169 |bibcode=2007GeoJI.170..151G |doi=10.1111/j.1365-246X.2007.03450.x |doi-access=free}}</ref> '']'' trees, conifers, ], ], ferns and cycads were plentiful during the time.{{sfn|Cantrill|Poole|2012|pp=9; 35; 56; 71; 185; 314}} In West Antarctica, coniferous forests dominated throughout the ] period (146–66&nbsp;Ma), though southern beech trees ('']'') became prominent towards the end of the Cretaceous.<ref>{{cite journal|journal=Special Publications|page=90|title=Origins and Evolution of the Antarctic Biota|last1=Crame|first1=James Alistair|year=1989|publisher=]|volume=47|doi=10.1144/GSL.SP.1989.047.01.01|s2cid=131433262}}</ref>{{sfn|Riffenburgh|2007|p=413}} ]s were common in the seas around Antarctica, and dinosaurs were also present, though only a few Antarctic dinosaur ] ('']'' and '']'', from the Early Jurassic ] of the Transantarctic Mountains,<ref name="SmithPol2007">{{cite journal|last1=Smith|first1=Nathan D.|last2=Pol|first2=Diego|date=2007|title=Anatomy of a basal sauropodomorph dinosaur from the Early Jurassic Hanson Formation of Antarctica|journal=Acta Palaeontologica Polonica|volume=52|issue=4|pages=657–674|url=http://www.app.pan.pl/archive/published/app52/app52-657.pdf|access-date=12 January 2012|archive-date=4 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304195051/http://app.pan.pl/archive/published/app52/app52-657.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> and '']'', '']'', '']'' and '']'' from Late Cretaceous of the Antarctic Peninsula) have been described.<ref name="Trinisaura">{{Cite journal|last1=Coria|first1=R. A.|last2=Moly|first2=J. J.|last3=Reguero|first3=M.|last4=Santillana|first4=S.|last5=Marenssi|first5=S.|year=2013|title=A new ornithopod (Dinosauria; Ornithischia) from Antarctica|journal=Cretaceous Research|volume=41|pages=186–193|doi=10.1016/j.cretres.2012.12.004|bibcode=2013CrRes..41..186C |hdl=11336/76749 |hdl-access=free}}</ref><ref name="Morrosaurus">{{cite journal|last1=Rozadilla|first1=Sebastián|last2=Agnolin|first2=Federico L.|last3=Novas|first3=Novas|last4=Rolando|first4=Alexis M. Aranciaga|display-authors=et al|year=2016|title=A new ornithopod (Dinosauria, Ornithischia) from the Upper Cretaceous of Antarctica and its palaeobiogeographical implications|journal=Cretaceous Research|volume=57|pages=311–324|doi=10.1016/j.cretres.2015.09.009|bibcode=2016CrRes..57..311R |hdl=11336/46572|hdl-access=free}}</ref><ref name="Ely&Case2019">{{Cite journal|last1=Ely|first1=Ricardo C.|last2=Case|first2=Judd A.|date=April 2019|title=Phylogeny of A New Gigantic Paravian (Theropoda; Coelurosauria; Maniraptora) From The Upper Cretaceous Of James Ross Island, Antarctica|journal=Cretaceous Research|language=en|volume=101|pages=1–16|doi=10.1016/j.cretres.2019.04.003|bibcode=2019CrRes.101....1E |s2cid=146325060|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=Leslie|first1=Mitch |title=The Strange Lives of Polar Dinosaurs |url=http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/polar-dinosaurs-200712.html |publisher=] |date=December 2007 |access-date=24 January 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20080130062646/http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/polar-dinosaurs-200712.html |archive-date=30 January 2008 }}</ref>
East Antarctica is geologically very varied, dating from the ] era, with some rocks formed more than 3 billion years ago. It is composed of a ] and ] platform which is the basis of the ]. On top of this base are various modern rocks, such as ]s, ]s, coal and ]s laid down during the Devonian and Jurassic periods to form the ]. In coastal areas such as ] and ] some ] has occurred.


{{Multiple image
The main ] resource known on the continent is ].<ref name="Trewby" /> It was first recorded near the ] by ] on the ], and now low-grade coal is known across many parts of the Transantarctic Mountains. The ] contain significant deposits of ]. The most valuable resources of Antarctica lie offshore, namely the ] and ]s found in the ] in 1973. Exploitation of all mineral resources is banned until 2048 by the ].
| width = 150
| image1 = Opening of western Indian Ocean 150 Ma.png
| image2 = Opening of South Atlantic 126 Ma.png
| image3 = Opening of South Atlantic 83 Ma.png
| footer = Breakup of Gondwana at {{circa|150}}&nbsp;Ma (''1st''), c. 126&nbsp;Ma (''2nd'') and at c. 83&nbsp;Ma (''3rd'')<ref group="note">Geographical features, such as ice caps, are shown as they are today for identification purposes, not as how they appeared at these times.</ref>
}}


=== Cenozoic era before present (66–10 Ma) ===
==Climate==
]
During the early ], Antarctica remained connected to South America as well as to southeastern Australia. Fauna from the ] in the Antarctic Peninsula, dating to the ], is very similar to equivalent South American faunas; with ]s, ]ns, ], and ]n ]s, as well as ] and possibly ]ns.<ref>{{harvnb|Defler|2019|pages=185–198}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Gelfo |first1=Javier Nicolás |last2=Goin |first2=Francisco Javier |last3=Bauzá |first3=Nicolás |last4=Reguero |first4=Marcelo Alfredo |date=October 2019 |title=The Fossil Record of Antarctic Land Mammals: Commented Review and Hypotheses for Future Research |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/337086325 |journal=Advances in Polar Sciences |volume=30 |issue=3 |pages=274–292 |doi=10.13679/j.advps.2019.0021 |hdl=11336/154407 }}</ref> Marsupials are thought to have dispersed into Australia via Antarctica by the early Eocene.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Eldridge |first1=Mark D B |last2=Beck |first2=Robin M D |last3=Croft |first3=Darin A |last4=Travouillon |first4=Kenny J |last5=Fox |first5=Barry J |title=An emerging consensus in the evolution, phylogeny, and systematics of marsupials and their fossil relatives (Metatheria) |journal=Journal of Mammalogy |date=23 May 2019 |volume=100 |issue=3 |pages=802–837 |doi=10.1093/jmammal/gyz018 }}</ref>

Around 53 Ma, Australia-] separated from Antarctica, opening the ].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Ball |first1=Philip |last2=Eagles |first2=Graeme |last3=Ebinger |first3=Cynthia |last4=McClay |first4=Ken |last5=Totterdell |first5=Jennifer |title=The spatial and temporal evolution of strain during the separation of Australia and Antarctica |journal=Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems |date=August 2013 |volume=14 |issue=8 |pages=2771–2799 |doi=10.1002/ggge.20160 |bibcode=2013GGG....14.2771B |url=https://epic.awi.de/id/eprint/33230/1/ggge20160.pdf }}</ref> The ] opened between Antarctica and South America around 30 Ma, resulting in the creation of the ] that completely isolated the continent.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Ice–Atmosphere Feedbacks Dominate the Response of the Climate System to Drake Passage Closure|journal=]|publisher=]|last1=England|first1=Matthew H.|last2=Hutchinson|first2=David K.|last3=Santoso|first3=Agus|last4=Sijp|first4=Willem P.|date=1 August 2017|volume=30|number=15|page=5775|doi=10.1175/JCLI-D-15-0554.1|jstor=26388506|bibcode=2017JCli...30.5775E|s2cid=133542067|doi-access=free}}</ref> Models of Antarctic geography suggest that this current, as well as a ] caused by lowering ] levels, caused the creation of small yet permanent polar ice caps. As CO<sub>2</sub> levels declined further the ice began to spread rapidly, replacing the forests that until then had covered Antarctica.<ref name="DeContoPollard2003">{{cite journal |last1=DeConto |first1=Robert M. |last2=Pollard |first2=David |date=16 January 2003 |title=Rapid Cenozoic glaciation of Antarctica induced by declining atmospheric CO<sub>2</sub> |journal=Nature |volume=421 |issue=6920 |pages=245–249 |bibcode=2003Natur.421..245D |doi=10.1038/nature01290 |pmid=12529638 |s2cid=4326971 |url=http://doc.rero.ch/record/16546/files/PAL_E3220.pdf }}</ref> ] ecosystems continued to exist on Antarctica until around 14-10 million years ago, when further cooling lead to their extermination.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Ashworth |first1=Allan C. |last2=Erwin |first2=Terry L. |date=2016 |title=''Antarctotrechus balli'' sp. n. (Carabidae, Trechini): the first ground beetle from Antarctica |journal=ZooKeys |issue=635 |pages=109–122 |doi=10.3897/zookeys.635.10535 |pmc=5126512 |pmid=27917060 |bibcode=2016ZooK..635..109A |doi-access=free}}</ref>

=== Present day ===
]]]

The ] of Antarctica, largely obscured by the continental ice sheet,{{sfn|Trewby|2002|p=88}} is being revealed by techniques such as ], ], and ].<ref name="Pou">{{cite journal |last1=Pour |first1=Amin Beiranvand |last2=Park |first2=Yongcheol |last3=Park |first3=Tae-Yoon S. |last4=Hong |first4=Jong Kuk |last5=Hashim |first5=Mazlan |last6=Woo |first6=Jusun |last7=Ayoobi |first7=Iman |title=Regional geology mapping using satellite-based remote sensing approach in Northern Victoria Land, Antarctica |journal=Polar Science |date=June 2018 |volume=16 |pages=23–46 |doi=10.1016/j.polar.2018.02.004 |bibcode=2018PolSc..16...23P }}</ref> Geologically, West Antarctica closely resembles the South American ].{{sfn|Stonehouse|2002|p=116}} The Antarctic Peninsula was formed by ] and the transformation of sea bed ]s into ]s.<ref name="Fel">{{cite journal |editor1-last=Feldmann |editor1-first=Michael O. |editor2-last=Woodburne |editor2-first=Rodney M. |title=Geology and Paleontology of Seymour Island, Antarctic Peninsula |journal=] |date=1988 |issue=169 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OznBf9AhHzQC |publisher=] |location=Boulder, Colorado |issn=0016-7606 |page=551 |isbn=9780813711690 |access-date=18 March 2023 |archive-date=14 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230814144138/https://books.google.com/books?id=OznBf9AhHzQC |url-status=live }}</ref>

West Antarctica was formed by the merging of several ], which created a number of mountain ranges in the region, the most prominent being the Ellsworth Mountains. The presence of the ] has resulted in ] along the border between West and East Antarctica, as well as the creation of the Transantarctic Mountains.{{sfn|Trewby|2002|pp=144, 197{{ndash}}198}}

East Antarctica is geologically varied. Its formation began during the ] Eon (4,000&nbsp;Ma{{ndash}}2,500&nbsp;Ma), and stopped during the Cambrian Period.{{sfn|Anderson|2010|p=28}} It is built on a ] of rock, which is the basis of the Precambrian ].{{sfn|Trewby|2002|p=71}} On top of the base are ] and sandstones, limestones, and shales that were laid down during the Devonian and Jurassic periods to form the Transantarctic Mountains.{{sfn|Campbell|Claridge|1987}} In coastal areas such as the ] and Victoria Land, some ] has occurred.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Paxman |first1=Guy J. G. |last2=Jamieson |first2=Stewart S. R. |last3=Ferraccioli |first3=Fausto |last4=Bentley |first4=Michael J. |last5=Forsberg |first5=Rene |last6=Ross |first6=Neil |last7=Watts |first7=Anthony B. |last8=Corr |first8=Hugh F. J. |last9=Jordan |first9=Tom A. |title=Uplift and tilting of the Shackleton Range in East Antarctica driven by glacial erosion and normal faulting |journal=Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth |date=March 2017 |volume=122 |issue=3 |pages=2390–2408 |doi=10.1002/2016JB013841 |bibcode=2017JGRB..122.2390P }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|title=Cenozoic geodynamics of the Ross Sea region, Antarctica: Crustal extension, intraplate strike-slip faulting, and tectonic inheritance|journal=Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth|last1=Salvini|first1=Francesco|date=10 November 1997|doi=10.1029/97JB01643|display-authors=et al|volume=102|issue=B11|pages=24669–24696|bibcode=1997JGR...10224669S|doi-access=free}}</ref>

Coal was first recorded in Antarctica near the ] by ] on the ] in 1907, and low-grade coal is known to exist across many parts of the Transantarctic Mountains.{{sfn|Trewby|2002|p=124}} The ] contain deposits of ].<ref name="Sul">{{cite news |last1=Sullivan |first1=Walter |title=Soviet Team Finds a 'Mountain of Iron' in Antarctica |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1976/12/19/archives/soviet-team-finds-a-mountain-of-iron-in-antarctica.html |access-date=14 March 2022 |work=] |date=19 December 1976 |archive-date=14 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220314143021/https://www.nytimes.com/1976/12/19/archives/soviet-team-finds-a-mountain-of-iron-in-antarctica.html |url-status=live }}</ref> There are ] and ]s in the Ross Sea.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/1991/0597/report.pdf|title=The Undiscovered Oil and Gas of Antarctica|website=]|publisher=]|last1=Kingston|first1=John|date=1991|location=Santa Barbara, California|page=12|access-date=5 March 2022|archive-date=7 January 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160107091439/https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/1991/0597/report.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

== Climate ==
{{Main|Climate of Antarctica}} {{Main|Climate of Antarctica}}
{{multiple image
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| image1 = Fryxellsee Opt.jpg
| alt1 = Photograph of blue ice on water in the foreground, with a snowy mountain in the background
| caption1 = ] covering ], in the ]
| image2 = AntarcticaSummer.jpg
| alt2 = Two men looking at a penguin on a sunny day
| caption2 = Temperate conditions near the coast in December
}}


Antarctica is the coldest, windiest, and driest of Earth's continents.<ref name="CIAfactbook-People"/>
] covering ], in the ], comes from ] meltwater from the ] and other smaller glaciers.]]
Near the coast, the temperature can exceed 10&nbsp;°C in summer and fall to below −40&nbsp;°C in winter. Over the elevated inland, it can rise to about −30&nbsp;°C in summer but fall below −80&nbsp;°C in winter.
]
Antarctica is the coldest place on ]. It is a frozen desert with little ]; the South Pole itself receives less than 10 cm (4 inches) per year, on average. Temperatures reach a minimum of between -80 °C and -90 °C (-112 °F and -130 °F) in the interior in winter and reach a maximum of between +5 °C and +15 °C (41 °F and 59 °F) near the coast in summer. Sunburn is often a health issue as the snow surface reflects almost all of the ultraviolet light falling on it.<ref name="BAS-weather">{{cite web|url=http://www.antarctica.ac.uk/met/jds/weather/weather.htm|title=''Weather in the Antarctic''|publisher=British Antarctic Survey.|accessdate=2006-02-09}}</ref> Eastern Antarctica is colder than its western counterpart because of its higher elevation. ]s rarely penetrate far into the continent, leaving the center cold and dry. Despite the lack of precipitation over the central portion of the continent, ] there lasts for extended time periods. Heavy snowfalls are not uncommon on the coastal portion of the continent, where snowfalls of up to 1.22&nbsp;meters (48&nbsp;inches) in 48&nbsp;hours have been recorded. ] At the edge of the continent, strong ]s off the polar plateau often blow at storm force. In the interior, however, wind speeds are typically moderate. During summer, more ] reaches the surface during clear days at the South Pole than at the ] because of the 24 hours of sunlight each day at the Pole.<ref name="cia" />


The lowest natural air temperature ever recorded on Earth was {{convert|−89.2|C|F|1|abbr=on}} at the Russian Vostok Station in Antarctica on 21 July 1983.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Turner|first1=John|display-authors=et al|year=2009|title=Record low surface air temperature at Vostok station, Antarctica|journal=Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres|language=en|volume=114|issue=D24|pages=D24102|doi=10.1029/2009JD012104|bibcode=2009JGRD..11424102T|issn=2156-2202|doi-access=free}}</ref> A lower air temperature of {{convert|−94.7|C|F|1|abbr=on}} was recorded in 2010 by satellite—however, it may have been influenced by ground temperatures and was not recorded at a height of {{convert|2|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} above the surface as required for official air temperature records.<ref name="Ric">{{cite news |last1=Rice |first1=Doyle |title=Antarctica records unofficial coldest temperature ever |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/weather/2013/12/10/antarctica-cold-record/3950019/ |access-date=20 February 2022 |work=] |publisher=] |date=10 December 2013 |archive-date=7 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210207142824/https://www.usatoday.com/story/weather/2013/12/10/antarctica-cold-record/3950019/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/weather-and-climate/weather/|title=Antarctic Weather|website=]|publisher=]|date=18 February 2019|access-date=13 January 2021|archive-date=13 January 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220113130703/https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/weather-and-climate/weather/|url-status=live}}</ref>
Antarctica is colder than the ] for two reasons. First, much of the continent is more than 3&nbsp;km above sea level, and temperature decreases with elevation. Second, the ] covers the north polar zone: the ocean's relative warmth is transferred through the icepack and prevents temperatures in the Arctic regions from reaching the extremes typical of the land surface of Antarctica.


Antarctica is a ] with little ]; the continent receives an average equivalent to about {{convert|150|mm|in|0|abbr=on}} of water per year, mostly in the form of snow. The interior is dryer and receives less than {{convert|50|mm|in|0|abbr=on}} per year, whereas the coastal regions typically receive more than {{convert|200|mm|in|0|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{Cite web |date=18 February 2019 |title=Antarctic weather |url=https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/weather-and-climate/weather/ |access-date=2 April 2022 |website=Australian Antarctic Program |language=en |archive-date=13 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220113130703/https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/weather-and-climate/weather/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In a few ]s, the wind and ] remove more snow than is accumulated by precipitation.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Hui |first1=Fengming |last2=Ci |first2=Tianyu |last3=Cheng |first3=Xiao |last4=Scambo |first4=Ted A. |last5=Liu |first5=Yan |last6=Zhang |first6=Yanmei |last7=Chi |first7=Zhaohui |last8=Huang |first8=Huabing |last9=Wang |first9=Xianwei |last10=Wang |first10=Fang |last11=Zhao |first11=Chen |date=2014 |title=Mapping blue-ice areas in Antarctica using ETM+ and MODIS data |journal=Annals of Glaciology |language=en |volume=55 |issue=66 |pages=129–137 |doi=10.3189/2014AoG66A069 |bibcode=2014AnGla..55..129H |s2cid=22195720 |issn=0260-3055 |doi-access=free |hdl=1969.1/180875 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> In the dry valleys, the same effect occurs over a rock base, leading to a barren and ] landscape.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Fountain |first1=Andrew G. |last2=Nylen |first2=Thomas H. |last3=Monaghan |first3=Andrew |last4=Basagic |first4=Hassan J. |last5=Bromwich |first5=David |title=Snow in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica |journal=International Journal of Climatology |date=April 2010 |volume=30 |issue=5 |pages=633–642 |doi=10.1002/joc.1933 |bibcode=2010IJCli..30..633F }}</ref> Antarctica is colder than the ] region, as much of Antarctica is over {{convert|3000|m|ft|abbr=on}} above sea level, where air temperatures are colder. The relative warmth of the ] is transferred through the ] and moderates temperatures in the Arctic region.{{Sfn|Rohli|Vega|2018|p=241}}
Given the latitude, long periods of constant darkness or constant sunlight create climates unfamiliar to human beings in much of the rest of the world. The ], commonly known as the southern lights, is a glow observed in the night sky near the South Pole. Another unique spectacle is ], a ground-level cloud composed of tiny ice crystals. It generally forms under otherwise clear or nearly clear skies, so people sometimes also refer to it as clear-sky precipitation. A ], a frequent atmospheric ], is a bright "spot" beside the true ].<ref name="BAS-weather" />


=== Regional differences ===
]s in Antarctica.]]


East Antarctica is colder than its western counterpart because of its higher elevation. ]s rarely penetrate far into the continent, leaving the centre cold and dry, with moderate wind speeds. Heavy snowfalls are common on the coastal portion of Antarctica, where snowfalls of up to {{cvt|1.22|m|in|0}} in 48 hours have been recorded. At the continent's edge, strong ]s off of the ] often blow at ]. During the summer, more ] reaches the surface at the South Pole than at the ] because of the 24 hours of sunlight received there each day.<ref name="CIAfactbook-People"/>
==Population==
{{seealso|Demographics of Antarctica}}
Antarctica has no permanent residents, but a number of governments maintain permanent ]s throughout the continent. The number of people conducting and supporting scientific research and other work on the continent and its nearby islands varies from approximately 4000 in summer to about 1000 in winter. Many of the stations are staffed year-round.


== Climate change ==
] through ]s.]]
] satellite projects caused gap in data.)]]
The first semi-permanent inhabitants of regions near Antarctica (areas situated south of the ]) were British and American sealers who used to spend a year or more on ], from 1786 onward. During the ] era, which lasted until 1966, the population of that island varied from over 1000 in the summer (over 2000 in some years) to some 200 in the winter. Most of the whalers were Norwegian, with an increasing proportion of Britons. The settlements included ], ], ], ], ], ], ] and ]. Managers and other senior officers of the whaling stations often lived together with their families. Among them was the founder of ], Captain ], a prominent Norwegian whaler and explorer who adopted British citizenship in 1910, along with his family.


{{excerpt|Climate change in Antarctica}}
]The first child born in the southern polar region was Norwegian girl ], born in Grytviken on ] ], and her birth was registered by the resident British Magistrate of South Georgia. She was a daughter of Fridthjof Jacobsen, the assistant manager of the whaling station, and of Klara Olette Jacobsen. Jacobsen arrived on the island in 1904 to become the manager of ], serving from 1914 to 1921; two of his children were born on the island.<ref>R.K. Headland, The Island of South Georgia, Cambridge University Press, 1984.</ref>


== Ozone depletion ==
] was the first person born on the Antarctic mainland, at ] in 1978; his parents were sent there along with seven other families by the ] government to determine if family life was suitable on the continent. In 1986, Juan Pablo Camacho was born at the Presidente Eduardo Frei Montalva Base, becoming the first Chilean born in Antarctica. Several bases are now home to families with children attending schools at the station.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://antarcticsun.usap.gov/oldissues2002-2003/answer.html|title=Questions and answers|publisher=''The Antarctic Sun''|accessdate=2006-02-09}}</ref>
{{Main|Ozone hole}}
] recorded, in September 2006]]


Scientists have studied the ] in the ] above Antarctica since the 1970s. In 1985, British scientists, working on data they had gathered at ] on the ], discovered a large area of low ] concentration over Antarctica.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Douglass |first1=Anne R. |author1-link=Anne R. Douglass |last2=Newman |first2=Paul A. |last3=Solomon |first3=Susan |author3-link=Susan Solomon |date=1 July 2014 |title=The Antarctic ozone hole: An update |journal=] |publisher=] |volume=67 |issue=7 |pages=42–48 |bibcode=2014PhT....67g..42D |doi=10.1063/PT.3.2449 |hdl=1721.1/99159 |hdl-access=free }}</ref><ref name="schiermeier2009">{{Cite journal|last1=Schiermeier|first1=Quirin|date=12 August 2009|title=Atmospheric science: Fixing the sky|journal=Nature|volume=460|issue=7257|pages=792–795|doi=10.1038/460792a|pmid=19675624|doi-access=free}}</ref> The 'ozone hole' covers almost the whole continent and was at its largest in September 2006;<ref name="Bates-2020">{{Cite web |last=Bates |first=Sofie |date=30 October 2020 |title=Large, Deep Antarctic Ozone Hole Persisting into November |url=http://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2020/large-deep-antarctic-ozone-hole-persisting-into-november |access-date=6 February 2021 |website=] |archive-date=31 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201031115924/http://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2020/large-deep-antarctic-ozone-hole-persisting-into-november |url-status=dead }}</ref> the longest-lasting event occurred in 2020.<ref>{{Cite web |date=6 January 2021 |title=Record-breaking 2020 ozone hole closes |url=https://wmo.int/media/news/record-breaking-2020-ozone-hole-closes |access-date=6 February 2021 |website=] |language=en }}</ref> The depletion is caused by the ] of ]s and halons into the atmosphere, which causes ozone to break down into other gases.<ref>{{Cite web |date=1 April 2017 |title=The Ozone Hole |url=https://www.bas.ac.uk/data/our-data/publication/the-ozone-layer/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220304065222/https://www.bas.ac.uk/data/our-data/publication/the-ozone-layer/ |archive-date=4 March 2022 |access-date=7 May 2022 |website=British Antarctic Survey |language=en-GB}}</ref> The extreme cold conditions of Antarctica allow ]s to form. The clouds act as ] for chemical reactions, which eventually lead to the destruction of ozone.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://csl.noaa.gov/assessments/ozone/2010/twentyquestions/Q10.pdf|publisher=NOAA|date=2010|access-date=2 April 2022|website=20 Questions: 2010 Update|title=Q10: Why has an "ozone hole" appeared over Antarctica when ozone-depleting substances are present throughout the stratosphere?|archive-date=23 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210423203609/https://csl.noaa.gov/assessments/ozone/2010/twentyquestions/Q10.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> The 1987 ] has restricted the emissions of ozone-depleting substances. The ozone hole above Antarctica is predicted to slowly disappear; by the 2060s, levels of ozone are expected to have returned to values last recorded in the 1980s.<ref name="WMO">{{cite web |title=World Meteorological Organization Global Ozone Research and Monitoring Project—Report No. 58: Scientific Assessment of Ozone Depletion 2018 |url=https://ozone.unep.org/sites/default/files/2019-05/SAP-2018-Assessment-report.pdf |access-date=20 February 2022 |website=Scientific Assessment Panel (SAP) |publisher=] |at=ES.3 |archive-date=9 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191209040718/https://ozone.unep.org/sites/default/files/2019-05/SAP-2018-Assessment-report.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>
==Flora and fauna==
{{seealso|Antarctica ecozone}}
===Flora===
]s are known in Antarctica.]]
{{main|Antarctic flora}}
The climate of Antarctica does not allow extensive vegetation. A combination of freezing temperatures, poor ] quality, lack of moisture, and lack of sunlight inhibit the flourishing of plants. As a result, plant life is limited to mostly ]es and ]s. The ]ic community is made up of mostly ]s. The ] of the continent largely consists of ]s, ]s, ], and ]. Growth generally occurs in the summer, and only for a few weeks at most.


The ozone depletion can cause a cooling of around {{convert|6|C-change}} in the ]. The cooling strengthens the ] and so prevents the outflow of the cold air near the South Pole, which in turn cools the continental mass of the East Antarctic ice sheet. The peripheral areas of Antarctica, especially the Antarctic Peninsula, are then subjected to higher temperatures, which accelerate the melting of the ice.<ref name="schiermeier2009"/> Models suggest that ozone depletion and the enhanced polar vortex effect may also account for the period of increasing sea ice extent, lasting from when observation started in the late 1970s until 2014. Since then, the coverage of Antarctic sea ice has decreased rapidly.<ref name="40Year">{{Cite journal |last1=Parkinson |first1=Claire L. |author1-link=Claire Parkinson |date=2019 |editor2= |title=A 40-y record reveals gradual Antarctic sea ice increases followed by decreases at rates far exceeding the rates seen in the Arctic |journal=] |volume=116 |issue=29 |pages=14414–14423 |bibcode=2019PNAS..11614414P |doi=10.1073/pnas.1906556116 |pmc=6642375 |pmid=31262810 |doi-access=free |editor1=}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Chung |first1=Eui-Seok |last2=Kim |first2=Seong-Joong |last3=Timmermann |first3=Axel |last4=Ha |first4=Kyung-Ja |author-link4=Kyung-Ja Ha |last5=Lee |first5=Sang-Ki |last6=Stuecker |first6=Malte F. |last7=Rodgers |first7=Keith B. |last8=Lee |first8=Sun-Seon |last9=Huang |first9=Lei |date=May 2022 |title=Antarctic sea-ice expansion and Southern Ocean cooling linked to tropical variability |url=https://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/40960 |journal=Nature Climate Change |volume=12 |issue=5 |pages=461–468 |bibcode=2022NatCC..12..461C |doi=10.1038/s41558-022-01339-z |s2cid=248151959}}</ref>
There are more than 200 species of lichens and approximately 50 species of bryophytes, such as mosses. Seven hundred species of algae exist, most of which are ]. Multicolored ] and ] are especially abundant in the coastal regions during the summer. There are two species of flowering plants found in the Antarctic Peninsula: '']'' (Antarctic hair grass) and '']'' (Antarctic pearlwort).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aad.gov.au/default.asp?casid=5551|title=Antarctic Wildlife|publisher=Australian Government Antarctic Division|accessdate=2006-02-05}}</ref>


===Fauna=== == Biodiversity ==
{{See also|Antarctic realm|Antarctic microorganism|Wildlife of Antarctica}}
Land ] is nearly completely ]. Invertebrate life includes ] ]s, ], ]s, ], ], ] and ]s. The flightless ] '']'', just 12 ] in size, is the largest land animal in Antarctica. The ] is one of only three birds that breed exclusively in Antarctica. They have been seen at the ].
Most species in Antarctica seem to be the descendants of species that lived there millions of years ago. As such, they must have survived multiple ]s. The species survived the periods of extremely cold climate in ], such as those with ] or areas that remained ice-free throughout the colder climate.<ref>{{cite book |chapter=Refuges of Antarctic diversity |last1=Convey |first1=Peter |last2=Biersma |first2=Elisabeth |last3=Casanova-Katny |first3=Angelica |last4=Maturana |first4=Claudia S. |editor1-last=Oliva |editor1-first=Marc |editor2-last=Ruiz Fernandez |editor2-first=Jesus |title=Past Antarctica: paleoclimatology and climate change |date=2020 |location=London |publisher=Academic Press |isbn=978-0-12-817925-3 |pages=182, 187–188}}</ref>


=== Animals ===
]s in ], Antarctica.]]


]s with juveniles]]
A variety of marine animals exist and rely, directly or indirectly, on the phytoplankton. Antarctic sea life includes ]s, ], ]s and ]s. The ] is the only penguin that breeds during the winter in Antarctica, while the ] breeds farther south than any other penguin. The ] has distinctive feathers around the eyes, giving the appearance of elaborate eyelashes. ]s, ]s, and ]s also breed in the Antarctic.
Invertebrate life of Antarctica includes species of microscopic ]s such as '']'', ], ], ]s, ]s, ] and ]s. The few terrestrial invertebrates are limited to the sub-Antarctic islands.<ref>{{cite web |title=Land Animals of Antarctica |url=http://www.antarctica.ac.uk/about_antarctica/wildlife/land-animals/index.php |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081007225336/http://www.antarctica.ac.uk/about_antarctica/wildlife/land_animals/index.php |archive-date=7 October 2008 |access-date=25 April 2017 |work=British Antarctic Survey |publisher=]}}</ref> The flightless ] '']'', the largest purely terrestrial animal in Antarctica, reaches {{convert|6|mm|in|frac=16|abbr=on}} in size.<ref>{{cite web|title=Antarctic Bestiary – Terrestrial Animals |url=http://www.units.muohio.edu/cryolab/education/antarcticbestiary_terrestrial.htm#Belgica|work=Laboratory for Ecophysiological Cryobiology |publisher=]|access-date=22 October 2011|last1=Sandro|first1=Luke|last2=Constible|first2=Juanita|archive-date=4 May 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190504002908/http://www.units.miamioh.edu/cryolab/education/antarcticbestiary_terrestrial.htm#Belgica |url-status=live}}</ref>


], which congregates in large ], is the ] of the ] of the Southern Ocean, being an important food organism for whales, seals, ]s, fur seals, ], ], and many bird species, such as penguins and ]es.{{sfn|Trewby|2002|p=114}} Some species of marine animals exist and rely, directly or indirectly, on ]. Antarctic sea life includes ]s, ]s, ]s, ]s and ]s.<ref name="Anc" /> The ] was very heavily hunted in the 18th and 19th centuries for its ] by ]s from the United States and the United Kingdom.<ref>{{harvnb|Stromberg|1991|page=247}}</ref> Leopard seals are ]s in the Antarctic ecosystem and migrate across the Southern Ocean in search of food.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Staniland |first1=Iain J. |last2=Ratcliffe |first2=Norman |last3=Trathan |first3=Philip N. |last4=Forcada |first4=Jaume |date=2018 |title=Long term movements and activity patterns of an Antarctic marine apex predator: The leopard seal |journal=] |volume=13 |issue=6 |pages=e0197767 |bibcode=2018PLoSO..1397767S |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0197767 |pmc=5988266 |pmid=29870541 |doi-access=free}}</ref>
The ] was very heavily hunted in the 18th and 19th centuries for its pelt by sealers from the United States and the United Kingdom. The ], a "]", is named after ], commander of ] sealing expeditions in the ]. ], which congregates in large ], is the ] of the ] of the ], and is an important food organism for whales, seals, ]s, fur seals, ], ], penguins, ]es and many other birds.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.knet.co.za/antarctica/fauna_and_flora.htm|title=Creatures of Antarctica|accessdate=2006-02-06}}</ref>


There are approximately 40 bird species that breed on or close to Antarctica, including species of ]s, ], ], and ]. Various other bird species visit the ocean around Antarctica, including some that normally reside in the Arctic.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Woods |first1=R. |last2=Jones |first2=H. I. |last3=Watts |first3=J. |last4=Miller |first4=G. D. |last5=Shellam |first5=G. R. |title=Health of Antarctic Wildlife |chapter=Diseases of Antarctic Seabirds |date=2009 |pages=35–55 |doi=10.1007/978-3-540-93923-8_3 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-3-540-93922-1 |language=en}}</ref> The ] is the only penguin that breeds during the winter in Antarctica; it and the ] breed farther south than any other penguin.<ref name="Anc">{{cite journal |last1=Ancel |first1=André |last2=Beaulieu |first2=Michaël |last3=Gilbert |first3=Caroline |title=The different breeding strategies of penguins: A review |journal=Comptes Rendus Biologies |date=January 2013 |volume=336 |issue=1 |pages=1–12 |doi=10.1016/j.crvi.2013.02.002 |pmid=23537764 |url=https://comptes-rendus.academie-sciences.fr/biologies/articles/10.1016/j.crvi.2013.02.002/ }}</ref>
The passing of the ] in the U.S. brought several restrictions to U.S. activity on the continent. The introduction of alien plants or animals can bring a criminal penalty, as can the extraction of any indigenous species. The ] of krill, which plays a large role in the Antarctic ecosystem, led officials to enact regulations on ]. The Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR), a treaty that came into force in 1980, requires that regulations managing all Southern Ocean fisheries consider potential effects on the entire Antarctic ecosystem.<ref name="cia" /> Despite these new acts, unregulated and illegal fishing, particularly of ], remains a serious problem. The illegal fishing of toothfish has been increasing, with estimates of 32,000&nbsp;tonnes in 2000.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/1492380.stm|title=Toothfish at risk from illegal catches|publisher=BBC News|accessdate=2006-02-11}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aad.gov.au/default.asp?casid=1539|title=Toothfish|publisher=Australian Government Antarctic Division|accessdate=2006-02-11}}</ref>


A ] by some 500 researchers during the ] was released in 2010. The research found that more than 235 marine organisms live in both polar regions, having bridged the gap of {{convert|12000|km|0|abbr=on}}. Large animals such as some ]s and birds make the round trip annually. Smaller forms of life, such as ] and ], are also found in both polar oceans. Factors that may aid in their distribution include temperature differences between the deep ocean at the poles and the equator of no more than {{convert|5|C-change|0}} and the major current systems or marine conveyor belts which are able to transport eggs and ].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kinver |first=Mark |date=15 February 2009 |title=Ice oceans 'are not poles apart' |work=BBC News |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7888558.stm |access-date=22 October 2011|archive-date=16 April 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160416235703/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7888558.stm|url-status=live}}</ref>
==Politics==


=== Fungi ===
]
]'') growing on the ], ]]]
As the only uninhabited continent, Antarctica has no government and belongs to no country. Various countries claim areas of it, although as a rule, no other countries recognize such claims. The area between 90°W and 150°W is the only part of Antarctica, indeed the only solid land on Earth, not claimed by any country.<ref name="cia" />


About 1,150 species of ] have been recorded in the Antarctic region, of which about 750 are non-]-forming.<ref name="basplants">{{cite web |title=Plants of Antarctica |url=http://www.antarctica.ac.uk/about_antarctica/wildlife/plants/index.php |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110607115623/http://www.antarctica.ac.uk//about_antarctica/wildlife/plants/index.php |archive-date=7 June 2011 |access-date=12 July 2011 |website=British Antarctic Survey |publisher=Natural Environment Research Council}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Bridge|first1=Paul D.|last2=Spooner|first2=Brian M.|author-link2=Brian Spooner (mycologist)|author3=Roberts, Peter J. |date=2008|title=Non-lichenized fungi from the Antarctic region|journal=Mycotaxon|volume=106|pages=485–490 |url=http://www.cybertruffle.org.uk/cyberliber/59575/0106/0485.htm|access-date=22 October 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130811210358/http://www.cybertruffle.org.uk/cyberliber/59575/0106/0485.htm|archive-date=11 August 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref> Some of the species, having evolved under extreme conditions, have ] and have contributed to shaping the rock formations of the McMurdo Dry Valleys and surrounding mountain ridges.<ref name="Selbmann" />
Since 1959, claims on Antarctica have been suspended and the continent is considered politically neutral. Its status is regulated by the 1959 ] and other related agreements, collectively called the ]. For the purposes of the Treaty System, Antarctica is defined as all land and ] south of 60°S. The treaty was signed by twelve countries, including the ] (and later ]), the ] and the ]. It set aside Antarctica as a scientific preserve, established freedom of scientific investigation, environmental protection, and banned military activity on that continent. This was the first ] agreement established during the ].


The simplified ] of such fungi, along with their similar ], ]s capable of remaining active at very low temperatures, and reduced life cycles, make them well suited to such environments. Their thick-walled and strongly ] cells make them resistant to ] radiation.<ref name="Selbmann" /> An Antarctic ] species, the ] lichen '']'', has been used as a ] in ] research.<ref name="Backhaus, Meeßen et al. 2019">{{cite journal |last1=Backhaus |first1=Theresa |last2=Meeßen |first2=Joachim |last3=Demets |first3=René |last4=de Vera |first4=Jean-Pierre |last5=Ott |first5=Sieglinde |title=Characterization of viability of the lichen ''Buellia frigida'' after 1.5 years in space on the International Space Station |journal=Astrobiology |volume=19 |issue=2 |year=2019 |doi=10.1089/ast.2018.1894 |pages=233–241|pmid=30742495 |bibcode=2019AsBio..19..233B |s2cid=73420634 |doi-access=free }}</ref>
The Antarctic Treaty prohibits any ], such as the establishment of military bases and fortifications, the carrying out of military manoeuvers, or the testing of any type of weapon. Military personnel or equipment are permitted only for scientific research or for other peaceful purposes.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.scar.org/treaty/|title=''Antarctic Treaty''|publisher=Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research|accessdate=2006-02-09}}</ref> The only documented land military manoeuvre was ], undertaken by the ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dna.gov.ar/INGLES/DIVULGAC/ARGANT.HTM|title=Argentina in Antarctica|publisher=Antarctica Institute of Argentina|accessdate=2006-02-09}}</ref>


The same features can be observed in algae and ], suggesting that they are ]s to the conditions prevailing in Antarctica. This has led to speculation that ] might have been similar to Antarctic fungi, such as '']'' and '']''.<ref name="Selbmann">{{Cite journal |author1=Selbmann, L |author2=de Hoog, G S |author3=Mazzaglia, A |last4=Friedmann |first4=E. I. |author-link4=Imre Friedmann |author5=Onofri, S |year=2005 |title=Fungi at the edge of life: cryptoendolithic black fungi from Antarctic desert |journal=Studies in Mycology |volume=51 |pages=1–32 |url=https://wi.knaw.nl/images/ResearchGroups/Publications/2005Selbmann0001.pdf |access-date=10 February 2021 |archive-date=29 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210429172010/https://wi.knaw.nl/images/ResearchGroups/Publications/2005Selbmann0001.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> Some of the species of fungi, which are apparently endemic to Antarctica, live in bird dung, and have evolved so they can grow inside extremely cold dung, but can also pass through the intestines of warm-blooded animals.{{sfn|de Hoog|2005|p=vii}}<ref>{{cite journal|title=Diversity and bioprospecting of fungal communities associated with endemic and cold-adapted macroalgae in Antarctica|journal=]|last1=Godinho|first1=Valeria M.|date=July 2013|volume=7|issue=7|pages=1434–1451|publisher=]|doi=10.1038/ismej.2013.77|pmid=23702515|pmc=3695302|bibcode=2013ISMEJ...7.1434G }}</ref>
The ] issues the ] to military members or civilians who perform research duty in Antarctica. The medal includes a "wintered over" bar issued to those who remain on the continent for two complete six-month seasons.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.history.navy.mil/medals/antarc.htm|title=Antarctic Service Medal|publisher=U.S. Navy|accessdate=2006-02-09}}</ref>


===Antarctic territories=== === Plants ===
{{Main|Flora of Antarctica}}
{{further|Flora Antarctica}}
] at ], Antarctica. This species is one of only two flowering plants native to Antarctica, the other one being Antarctic pearlwort (Colobanthus quitensis).]]
Throughout its history, Antarctica has seen a wide variety of plant life. In the ], it was dominated by a fern-] ecosystem, which changed into a temperate ] by the end of that period. During the colder ] (17–2.5&nbsp;Ma), a ] ecosystem replaced the rainforests. The climate of present-day Antarctica does not allow extensive vegetation to form.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Rees-Owen |first1=Rhian L. |last2=Gill |first2=Fiona L. |last3=Newton |first3=Robert J. |last4=Ivanović |first4=Ruza F. |last5=Francis |first5=Jane E. |last6=Riding |first6=James B. |last7=Vane |first7=Christopher H. |last8=Lopes dos Santos |first8=Raquel A. |date=2018 |title=The last forests on Antarctica: Reconstructing flora and temperature from the Neogene Sirius Group, Transantarctic Mountains |journal=Organic Geochemistry |language=en |volume=118 |pages=4–14 |doi=10.1016/j.orggeochem.2018.01.001 |bibcode=2018OrGeo.118....4R |s2cid=46651929 |issn=0146-6380 |doi-access=free |hdl=10023/12701 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> A combination of freezing temperatures, poor ], and a lack of moisture and sunlight inhibit plant growth, causing low ] and limited distribution. The ] largely consists of ]s (25 species of ] and 100 species of ]es). There are three species of ]s, all of which are found in the Antarctic Peninsula: '']'' (Antarctic hair grass), '']'' (Antarctic pearlwort) and the non-native '']'' (annual bluegrass).<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Chwedorzewska |first1=K.J. |last2=Giełwanowska |first2=I. |last3=Olech |first3=M. |last4=Molina-Montenegro |first4=M.A. |last5=Wódkiewicz |first5=M. |last6=Galera |first6=H. |title=Poa annua L. in the maritime Antarctic: an overview |journal=Polar Record |date=November 2015 |volume=51 |issue=6 |pages=637–643 |doi=10.1017/S0032247414000916 |bibcode=2015PoRec..51..637C |s2cid=84747627 |doi-access=free }}</ref>


=== Other organisms ===
]

{{main|Antarctic territorial claims}}
Of the 700 species of algae in Antarctica, around half are marine ]. Multicoloured ] are especially abundant in the coastal regions during the summer.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Algae |url=https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/plants/algae/ |access-date=24 April 2022 |website=] |publisher=] |language=en |archive-date=19 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200819181845/https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/plants/algae/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Even ] can harbour unique ecological communities, as it expels all salt from the water when it freezes, which accumulates into pockets of ] that also harbour dormant microorganisms. When the ice begins to melt, brine pockets expand and can combine to form brine channels, and the ] inside the pockets can reawaken and thrive until the next freeze.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Morawetz |first1=Klaus |last2=Thoms |first2=Silke |last3=Kutschan |first3=Bernd |date=3 March 2017 |title=Formation of brine channels in sea ice |journal=The European Physical Journal E |language=en |volume=40 |issue=3 |pages=25 |doi=10.1140/epje/i2017-11512-x |pmid=28255919 |arxiv=1406.5031 |s2cid=3759495 |issn=1292-895X}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=kazilek |date=15 July 2014 |title=Brine Channels |url=https://askabiologist.asu.edu/brine-channels |access-date=25 June 2022 |website=askabiologist.asu.edu |language=en}}</ref> Bacteria have also been found as deep as {{convert|800|m|mi|abbr=on}} under the ice.<ref name="NYT-20130206">{{cite news |last=Gorman |first=James |title=Bacteria Found Deep Under Antarctic Ice, Scientists Say |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/07/science/living-bacteria-found-deep-under-antarctic-ice-scientists-say.html |date=6 February 2013 |work=] |access-date=6 February 2013 |archive-date=1 January 2022 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220101/https://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/07/science/living-bacteria-found-deep-under-antarctic-ice-scientists-say.html |url-status=live }}</ref> It is thought to be likely that there exists a native bacterial community within the subterranean water body of ].<ref>{{cite journal|title=Microbiology of the subglacial Lake Vostok: first results of borehole-frozen lake water analysis and prospects for searching for lake inhabitants|journal=Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society|publisher=]|date=28 January 2016|last1=Bulat|first1=Sergey A. |doi=10.1098/rsta.2014.0292 |volume=374 |issue=2059 |at=Abstract |pmid=26667905 |bibcode=2016RSPTA.37440292B |s2cid=8399775 |doi-access=free}}</ref> The existence of life there is thought to strengthen the argument for the possibility of life on ]'s moon ], which may have water beneath its water-ice crust.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Raha |first1=Bipasa |title=The Search for Earth-Like Habitable Planet: Antarctica Lake Vostok May be Jupiter's Europa |journal=Science and Culture |date=2013 |issue=79 |pages=120–122 |issn=0036-8156 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/260246127 |access-date=20 February 2022 |archive-date=2 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220402184107/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/260246127_The_Search_for_Earth-Like_Habitable_Planet_Antarctica_Lake_Vostok_May_be_Jupiter%27s_Europa |url-status=live }}</ref> There exists a community of ] bacteria in the highly ]ne waters of ].<ref>{{cite journal|title=Source Environments of the Microbiome in Perennially Ice-Covered Lake Untersee, Antarctica|journal=Frontiers in Microbiology|date=10 May 2019|doi=10.3389/fmicb.2019.01019|editor=Pierre Amato |last1=Weisleitner|first1=Klemens|volume=10|page=1019|pmid=31134036|pmc=6524460|display-authors=et al|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{cite report |pages=25–26|title=Psychrophilic and Psychrotolerant Microbial Extremophiles in Polar Environments |section=5.4: Microbial Extremophiles from Lake Untersee |last1=Hoover |first1=Richard Brice |last2=Pikuta |first2=Elena V. |date=January 2010 |access-date=30 January 2022 |publisher=] |url=https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/20100002095/downloads/20100002095.pdf |archive-date=30 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220130082402/https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/20100002095/downloads/20100002095.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> The prevalence of highly resilient creatures in such inhospitable areas could further bolster the argument for ] in cold, ]-rich environments.<ref name="NASA-CloroxLake">{{cite web |last1=Coulter |first1=Dana |editor=Tony Phillips |title=Extremophile Hunt Begins |url=https://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2008/07feb_cloroxlake.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100323002712/https://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2008/07feb_cloroxlake.htm |archive-date=23 March 2010 |access-date=22 October 2011 |work=Science News |publisher=NASA}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable"

!Country
=== Conservation and environmental protection ===
!Territory

!Claim limits
] on ] Island, photographed in 1992]]
!Date
The ] was adopted in 1964.<ref name="Wauchope-2019">{{Cite journal |last1=Wauchope |first1=Hannah S. |last2=Shaw |first2=Justine D. |last3=Terauds |first3=Aleks |date=2019 |title=A snapshot of biodiversity protection in Antarctica |journal=Nature Communications |language=en |volume=10 |issue=1 |pages=946 |doi=10.1038/s41467-019-08915-6 |pmid=30808907 |pmc=6391489 |bibcode=2019NatCo..10..946W |issn=2041-1723}}</ref> The ] of ] (an animal that plays a large role in the Antarctic ecosystem) led officials to enact regulations on fishing. The ], an international treaty that came into force in 1980, regulates fisheries, aiming to preserve ecological relationships.<ref name="CIAfactbook-People" /> Despite these regulations, ]—particularly of the highly prized ] which is marketed as Chilean sea bass in the U.S.—remains a problem.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ccamlr.org/en/fisheries/toothfish-fisheries |website=]|title=Toothfish fisheries|date=2 July 2021 |access-date=13 January 2021|archive-date=24 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131224111026/https://www.ccamlr.org/en/fisheries/toothfish-fisheries|url-status=live}}</ref>

In analogy to the 1980 treaty on ], countries led by New Zealand and the United States negotiated a treaty on mining. This ] was adopted in 1988. After a strong campaign from environmental organisations, first Australia and then France decided not to ratify the treaty.{{Sfn|Day|2019|loc=The Antarctic Treaty of 1959}} Instead, countries adopted the ] (the Madrid Protocol), which entered into force in 1998.<ref name="AUgovAntartica-Madrid">{{cite web |title=The Madrid Protocol |date=17 May 2019 |url=https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/law-and-treaty/the-madrid-protocol/ |access-date=20 February 2022 |publisher=Australian Antarctic Division |archive-date=15 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200815120424/https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/law-and-treaty/the-madrid-protocol/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The Madrid Protocol bans all mining, designating the continent as a "natural reserve devoted to peace and science".<ref>{{cite web |date=17 May 2019 |title=Protocol on Environmental Protection To The Antarctic Treaty (The Madrid Protocol) |url=https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/law-and-treaty/the-madrid-protocol/ |access-date=8 February 2021 |website=Australian Antarctic Programme |archive-date=15 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200815120424/https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/law-and-treaty/the-madrid-protocol/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

]]]
The pressure group ] established ] from 1987 to 1992 as part of its attempt to establish the continent as a ].<ref>{{cite news |date=November 1992 |title=Now you see it now you don't! |volume=82 |page=5 |work=ECO |issue=3 |location= |url=https://www.asoc.org/storage/documents/ECOs/1992/lxxxii.3_atcm.pdf |access-date=20 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220220201352/https://www.asoc.org/storage/documents/ECOs/1992/lxxxii.3_atcm.pdf|archive-date=20 February 2022}}</ref> The ] was established in 1994 by the ]. It covers {{convert|50|e6km2|e6sqmi|abbr=unit}} and completely surrounds the Antarctic continent. All ] is banned in the zone, though Japan has continued to hunt whales in the area, ostensibly for research purposes.<ref name="ASOC">{{cite web |title=Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary |url=https://www.asoc.org/advocacy/wildlife-conservation/southern-ocean-whale-sanctuary |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220113124807/https://www.asoc.org/advocacy/wildlife-conservation/southern-ocean-whale-sanctuary |archive-date=13 January 2022 |access-date=13 January 2022 |website=Antarctic and Southern Coalition}}</ref>

Despite these protections, the biodiversity in Antarctica is still at risk from human activities. ] cover less than 2% of the area and provide better protection for ] than for less visible animals.<ref name="Wauchope-2019" /> There are more terrestrial protected areas than ]s.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Coetzee |first1=Bernard W.T. |last2=Convey |first2=Peter |last3=Chown |first3=Steven L. |date=2017 |title=Expanding the Protected Area Network in Antarctica is Urgent and Readily Achievable: Expanding Antarctica's protected areas |journal=Conservation Letters |language=en |volume=10 |issue=6 |pages=670–680 |doi=10.1111/conl.12342 |s2cid=89943276 |doi-access=free }}</ref> Ecosystems are impacted by local and global threats, notably ], the ], and the various ].<ref name="Wauchope-2019" />

== History of exploration ==
{{Main|History of Antarctica|Colonization of Antarctica|Farthest south}}
{{See also|List of Antarctic expeditions|Women in Antarctica|List of polar explorers}}

] records: pre-1521 possibly by ] (B), 1521 by ] (A), 18th century

by ] (D/E), early 19th century by ] (F) and ] (G) and around the turn to the 20th century from 1900 by ] (H), after landing and setting up base for the first time on Antarctica, to ] reaching the ] in 1911 (K).]]

Early world maps, like the ], feature the hypothetical continent '']''. Much larger than and unrelated to Antarctica, ''Terra Australis'' was a landmass that ] scholars presumed necessary to balance the known lands in the northern hemisphere.<ref>{{cite book |last=McIntosh |first=Gregory C. |title=The Piri Reis Map of 1513 |year=2000 |publisher=] |location=], ] |isbn=9780820343594 |url=https://archive.org/details/gregory-c.-mc-intosh-the-piri-reis-map-of-1513}}</ref>

]'s ships, {{HMS|Resolution|1771|6}} and {{HMS|Adventure|1771|2}}, crossed the Antarctic Circle on 17 January 1773, in December 1773, and again in January 1774.{{sfn|Riffenburgh|2007|p=296}} Cook came within about {{convert|75|mi|km|order=flip|-1|abbr=on}} of the Antarctic coast before retreating in the face of ] in January 1773.{{sfn|Edwards|1999|p=250}} In 1775, he called the existence of a polar continent "probable", and in another copy of his ] he wrote: " firmly believe it and it's more than probable that we have seen a part of it".{{sfn|Beaglehole|1968|p=643}}

=== 19th century ===
]'s '']'' ]. The hut (HSM 22) still stands and is located on ], the cape where ] Borchgrevnik participated in the ] on Antarctica.]]

] were among the earliest to go closer to the Antarctic landmass, perhaps in the earlier part of the 19th century. The oldest known human remains in the Antarctic region was a skull, dated from 1819 to 1825, that belonged to a young woman on ] at the ]. The woman, who was likely to have been part of a ] expedition, was found in 1985.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Henriques |first1=Martha |date=22 October 2018 |title=The bones that could shape Antarctica's fate |url=https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20181019-the-bones-that-could-shape-antarcticas-future |website=BBC Future |access-date=22 July 2021 |archive-date=22 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210722120344/https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20181019-the-bones-that-could-shape-antarcticas-future |url-status=live }}</ref>

The first person to see Antarctica or its ice shelf was long thought to have been the British sailor ], a captain in the ], who discovered the tip of the Antarctic peninsula on 30 January 1820. However, a captain in the ], ], recorded seeing an ice shelf on 27 January.{{sfn|Trewby|2002|p=39}} The American sealer ], whose sealing ship was in the region at this time, may also have been the first to sight the Antarctic Peninsula.{{sfn|Trewby|2002|p=139}}

The ], led by Bellingshausen and ] on the 985-ton ] ] and the 530-ton support vessel ], reached a point within {{convert|32|km|mi|abbr=on}} of ] and recorded sighting an ice shelf at {{coord|69|21|28|S|2|14|50|W|}},<ref name="Tam">{{cite news |last1=Tammiksaar |first1=Erki |title=Punane Bellingshausen |trans-title=Red Bellingshausen |url=https://leht.postimees.ee/2631146/punane-bellingshausen |work=] |date=14 December 2013 |page= |url-access=subscription |language=et |access-date=13 February 2022 |archive-date=13 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220213153336/https://leht.postimees.ee/2631146/punane-bellingshausen |url-status=live }}</ref> on 27 January 1820.<ref>{{cite journal | date= September 1971 | title= Bellingshausen and the discovery of Antarctica| journal= Polar Record | volume= 15 | issue= 99 | pages= 887–889 | doi= 10.1017/S0032247400062112 | last1= Armstrong | first1= Terence E.| bibcode= 1971PoRec..15..887A| s2cid= 129664580|author-link1=Terence Edward Armstrong}}</ref>{{refn|1=The feature discovered by the Russians was the ].|group=note}} The sighting happened three days before Bransfield sighted the land of the ] of Antarctica, as opposed to the ice of an ice shelf, and 10 months before Palmer did so in November 1820. The first documented landing on Antarctica was by the English-born American sealer ], apparently at ] on 7 February 1821, although some historians dispute this claim, as there is no evidence Davis landed on the Antarctic continent rather than an offshore island.<ref>{{harvnb|p=133|Baughmann|1994}}</ref>{{sfn|Joyner|1992|p=5}}

On 22 January 1840, two days after the discovery of the coast west of the ], some members of the crew of the 1837{{ndash}}1840 expedition of the French explorer ] disembarked on the ], off the coast of Adélie Land, where they took some mineral, algae, and animal samples, erected the French flag, and claimed French ].{{sfn|Trewby|2002|p=67}} The American captain ] led an expedition in 1838–1839 and was the first to claim he had discovered the continent.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Tammiksaar |first1=E. |title=The Russian Antarctic Expedition under the command of Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen and its reception in Russia and the world |journal=Polar Record |date=September 2016 |volume=52 |issue=5 |pages=578–600 |doi=10.1017/S0032247416000449 |bibcode=2016PoRec..52..578T |s2cid=132425113 }}</ref> The British naval officer ] failed to realise that what he referred to as "the various patches of land recently discovered by the American, French and English navigators on the verge of the Antarctic Circle" were connected to form a single continent.{{sfn|Cawley|2015|p=131}}{{sfn|Ainsworth|1847 || p=479}}<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Hobbs |first=William H. |date=October 1932 |title=Wilkes Land Rediscovered |journal=Geographical Review |volume=22 |issue=4 |page=640 |doi=10.2307/208819 |jstor=208819 |bibcode=1932GeoRv..22..632H }}</ref>{{refn|1=Ross passed through what is now known as the Ross Sea and discovered Ross Island (both of which were named after him) in 1841. He sailed along a huge wall of ice that was later named the ].{{sfn|Trewby|2002|p=154}} ] and ] are named after two ships from his expedition: {{HMS|Erebus|1826|6}} and {{HMS|Terror|1813|2}}.{{sfn|Trewby|2002|pp=154, 185}}|group=note}} The American explorer ] landed on East Antarctica on 26 January 1853.{{sfn|Day|2013|p=88}}

The first confirmed landing on the continental mass of Antarctica occurred in 1895 when the Norwegian-Swedish ] ship ] reached ].<ref>{{harvnb|p=85|Pyne|2017}}</ref>

=== 20th century ===
] (1902) at ] of ], Antarctica, one of the earliest repeatedly temporarily used dwellings on Antarctica. In the background ], the largest ] today, with cargo operations of the supply ship MV ''American Tern'' of ''Operation Deep Freeze'' 2007.]]

During the ''Nimrod'' Expedition led by the British explorer ] in 1907, parties led by ] became the first to climb ] and to reach the ]. ], who assumed the leadership of the Magnetic Pole party on their perilous return, retired in 1931.<ref>{{cite web |title=Tannatt William Edgeworth David |publisher=Australian Antarctic Division |url=https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/history/people/tannatt-edgeworth-david/ |access-date=27 September 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100929041848/http://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/history/people-of-antarctic-history/tannatt-edgeworth-david |archive-date=29 September 2010 |url-status=live}}</ref> Between December 1908 and February 1909: Shackleton and three members of his expedition became the first humans to traverse the ], the first to cross the Transantarctic Mountains (via the Beardmore Glacier), and the first to set foot on the ]. On 14 December 1911, ] led by Norwegian explorer ] from the ship '']'' became the first to reach the geographic South Pole, using a route from the ] and up the ].{{sfn|Riffenburgh|2007|pp=30{{ndash}}32}} One month later, the doomed ] reached the pole.{{sfn|Trewby|2002|p=159}}

The American explorer ] led four expeditions to Antarctica during the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s, using the first mechanised ]. His expeditions conducted extensive geographical and scientific research, and he is credited with surveying a larger region of the continent than any other explorer.{{sfn|Trewby|2002|p=44}} In 1937, ] became the first woman to step onto the Antarctic mainland.<ref name="Bla">{{cite web |last1=Blackadder |first1=Jesse |author1-link=Jesse Blackadder |title=The first woman in Antarctica |url=http://www.antarctica.gov.au/magazine/2011-2015/issue-23-december-2012/antarctic-arts-fellowship/the-first-woman-in-antarctica |website=Australian Antarctic Program |publisher=] |access-date=27 June 2016 |date=December 2012 |archive-date=13 April 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200413074855/http://www.antarctica.gov.au/magazine/2011-2015/issue-23-december-2012/antarctic-arts-fellowship/the-first-woman-in-antarctica |url-status=live }}</ref> ] had landed on an island of Antarctica, earlier in 1935.<ref name="Cam">{{cite journal |last1=Norman |first1=F. I. |last2=Gibson |first2=J. A. E. |last3=Burgess |first3=J. S. |title=Klarius Mikkelsen's 1935 landing in the Vestfold Hills, East Antarctica: some fiction and some facts |journal=Polar Record |date=October 1998 |volume=34 |issue=191 |pages=293–304 |doi=10.1017/S0032247400025985 |bibcode=1998PoRec..34..293N |s2cid=131433193 }}</ref>

The South Pole was next reached on 31 October 1956, when a U.S. Navy group led by Rear Admiral ] successfully landed an aircraft there.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.history.navy.mil/wars/datesoct.htm |title=Dates in American Naval History: October |work=Naval History and Heritage Command |publisher=United States Navy |access-date=12 February 2006 |archive-url=http://webarchive.loc.gov/all/20040626080052/http://www.history.navy.mil/wars/datesoct.htm |archive-date=26 June 2004 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Six women were flown to the South Pole as a publicity stunt in 1969.<ref name="Roy" />{{refn|1=The women were ], Jean Pearson, ], ], ] and ].<ref name="Roy">{{cite web |title=Pamela Young |url=https://www.royalsociety.org.nz/150th-anniversary/150-women-in-150-words/1968-2017/pamela-young/ |publisher=] |access-date=21 February 2022 |archive-date=21 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220221124451/https://www.royalsociety.org.nz/150th-anniversary/150-women-in-150-words/1968-2017/pamela-young/ |url-status=live }}</ref>|group=note}} In the summer of 1996{{ndash}}1997, Norwegian explorer ] became the first person to cross Antarctica alone from coast to coast, helped by a kite on parts of the journey.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2013/dec/13/borge-ousland-how-i-crossed-antarctica|title=Børge Ousland: How I crossed Antarctica alone|last=Ousland|first=Børge|author-link1=Børge Ousland|date=13 December 2013|work=The Guardian|access-date=30 December 2018|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077|archive-date=10 October 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191010224616/https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2013/dec/13/borge-ousland-how-i-crossed-antarctica|url-status=live}}</ref> Ousland holds the record for the fastest unsupported journey to the South Pole, taking 34 days.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/fastest-unsupported-%28kite-assisted%29-journey-to-the-south-pole|title=Fastest unsupported (kite assisted) journey to the South Pole taking just 34 days|website=Guinness World Records|access-date=30 December 2018|archive-date=25 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225021710/https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/fastest-unsupported-(kite-assisted)-journey-to-the-south-pole|url-status=live}}</ref>

== Demographics ==
{{main|Demographics of Antarctica|Religion in Antarctica}}

The first semi-permanent inhabitants of regions near Antarctica (areas situated south of the ]) were British and American sealers who used to spend a year or more on ], from 1786 onward. During the whaling era, which lasted until 1966, the population of the island varied from over 1,000 in the summer (over 2,000 in some years) to some 200 in the winter. Most of the whalers were Norwegian, with an increasing proportion from Britain.{{sfn|Headland|1984|p=238}}{{refn|1=The first settlements included ], ], ], ], ], ], ] and ]. Managers and other senior officers of the whaling stations often lived together with their families. Among them was the founder of Grytviken, Captain ], a prominent Norwegian whaler and explorer who, along with his family, adopted British citizenship in 1910.{{sfn|Headland|1984|p=238}}|group=note}}

], at ]]]

Antarctica's population consists mostly of the staff of ] in Antarctica (which are continuously maintained despite the population decline in the winter), although there are 2 all-civilian bases in Antarctica: the ] and the ].<ref name="Nat">{{cite web |title=Antarctica |url=https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/antarctica/ |website=Resource Library |publisher=] |access-date=31 August 2020 |date=4 January 2012 |archive-date=2 March 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210302011100/https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/antarctica/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The number of people conducting and supporting scientific research and other work on the continent and its nearby islands varies from about 1,200 in winter to about 4,800 in the summer, with an additional 136 people in the winter to 266 people in the summer from the 2 civilian bases (as of 2017). Some of the ]s are staffed year-round, the winter-over personnel typically arriving from their home countries for a one-year assignment. The ] ] at the ] on ] opened in 2004; it is staffed year-round by one or two ]s, who are similarly rotated every year.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.spc.rs/eng/flock_antarcticas_orthodox_temple_celebrates_holy_trinity_day|title=Flock of Antarctica's Orthodox temple celebrates Holy Trinity Day|publisher=Serbian Orthodox Church|date=24 May 2004|access-date=7 February 2009|archive-date=26 August 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160826083133/http://www.spc.rs/eng/flock_antarcticas_orthodox_temple_celebrates_holy_trinity_day|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://pravoslavye.org.ua/index.php?action=fullinfo&r_type=&id=22495|script-title=ru:Владимир Петраков: 'Антарктика – это особая атмосфера, где живут очень интересные люди'|language=ru|trans-title=Vladimir Petrakov: "Antarctic is a special world, full of very interesting people"|website=Pravoslavye|date=28 April 2021|access-date=28 February 2009|archive-date=16 July 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716052654/http://pravoslavye.org.ua/index.php?action=fullinfo&r_type=&id=22495|url-status=live}}</ref>

The first child born in the southern polar region was a Norwegian girl, ], born in ] on 8 October 1913.{{sfn|Headland |1984|pp=12, 130}} ] was the first person born south of the ] and the first to be born on the Antarctic mainland at the Esperanza Base of the Argentine Army.<ref>{{harvnb|Russell|1986|p=17}}</ref>

The ] prohibits any ], including the establishment of military bases and fortifications, military manoeuvres, and weapons testing. Military personnel or equipment are permitted only for scientific research or other peaceful purposes.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.scar.org/treaty/|title=''Antarctic Treaty''|publisher=]|access-date=9 February 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060206193457/http://www.scar.org/treaty/|archive-date=6 February 2006|url-status=dead}}</ref> ] by the ] in 1965 was conducted to strengthen Argentina's claim in Antarctica.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dna.gov.ar/INGLES/DIVULGAC/ARGANT.HTM |title=Argentina in Antarctica |publisher=] |access-date=9 February 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060306211514/http://www.dna.gov.ar/INGLES/DIVULGAC/ARGANT.HTM |archive-date=6 March 2006 |url-status=dead }}</ref>{{better source needed|date=January 2023}}

], a distinct variety of the ], has been found to be spoken by people living on Antarctica and the ].<ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Hince |first=Bernadette |title=The Antarctic Dictionary: A Complete Guide to Antarctic English |publisher=] |year=2000 |isbn=978-0957747111 |location=Collingwood, Victoria |pages=vii–x |language=en |chapter=Introduction}}</ref>

== Politics ==
] signs the ] in December 1959.]]

Antarctica's status is regulated by the 1959 ] and other related agreements, collectively called the Antarctic Treaty System. Antarctica is defined as all land and ice shelves south of 60° S for the purposes of the Treaty System.<ref name="CIAfactbook-People" /> The treaty was signed by twelve countries, including the ], the United Kingdom, Argentina, ], Australia, and the United States. Since 1959, a further 42 countries have ] to the treaty. Countries can participate in decision-making if they can demonstrate that they do significant research on Antarctica; {{As of|2022|lc=y}}, 29 countries have this 'consultative status'.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Parties |url=https://www.ats.aq/devAS/Parties?lang=e |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220223060031/https://www.ats.aq/devAS/Parties?lang=e |archive-date=23 February 2022 |access-date=2 April 2022 |website=Secretariat of the Antarctic Treaty}}</ref> Decisions are based on ], instead of a ]. The treaty set aside Antarctica as a scientific preserve and established freedom of scientific investigation and environmental protection.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Yermakova |first=Yelena |date=3 July 2021 |title=Legitimacy of the Antarctic Treaty System: is it time for a reform? |journal=The Polar Journal |volume=11 |issue=2 |pages=342–359 |doi=10.1080/2154896X.2021.1977048 |s2cid=239218549 |doi-access=free |hdl=10852/93248 |hdl-access=free }}</ref><ref>M. Wright, Note, "The Ownership of Antarctica, its Living and Mineral Resources", ''Journal of Law and the Environment'' Vol. 4, 1987.</ref>

=== Territorial claims ===
{{Main|Territorial claims in Antarctica}}
] (1539–1555), the first territorial claim over the lands near the South Pole; later it was incorporated into the ].]]
In 1539, the ], ], created the ], which encompassed lands south of the ] and thus theoretically Antarctica, the existence of which was only hypothesized at the time,<ref name=Oscar>{{cite book |author1=Pinochet de la Barra, Óscar |title=La Antártica Chilena |date=November 1944 |publisher=Editorial Andrés Bello}}</ref> granting this Governorate to ],<ref>{{cite web |author1=Calamari, Andrea |title=El conjurado que gobernó la Antártida |url=https://www.jotdown.es/2022/06/el-conjurado-que-goberno-la-antartida/ |publisher=Jot Down |language=es |date=June 2022 |access-date=30 August 2022 |archive-date=20 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220920171548/https://www.jotdown.es/2022/06/el-conjurado-que-goberno-la-antartida/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Pedro Sancho de la Hoz |url=https://dbe.rah.es/biografias/7380/pedro-sancho-de-la-hoz |publisher=Real Academia de la Historia |access-date=25 August 2022 |language=es |archive-date=20 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220920171823/https://dbe.rah.es/biografias/7380/pedro-sancho-de-la-hoz |url-status=live }}</ref> who in 1540 transferred the title to the conquistador ].<ref>{{cite web |title=1544 |url=http://www.biografiadechile.cl/detalle.php?IdContenido=827&IdCategoria=40&IdArea=191&status=S&TituloPagina=Historia%20de%20Chile&pos=30 |publisher=Biografía de Chile |language=es |access-date=30 August 2022 |archive-date=19 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220819190503/http://www.biografiadechile.cl/detalle.php?IdContenido=827&IdCategoria=40&IdArea=191&status=S&TituloPagina=Historia%20de%20Chile&pos=30 |url-status=live }}</ref> Spain claimed all the territories to the south of the Strait of Magellan until the ], with eastern and western borders to these claims specified in the ] and ] respectively. In 1555 the claim was incorporated to ].<ref>{{cite book |author1=Francisco Orrego Vicuña |author2=Augusto Salinas Araya |title=Desarrollo de la Antártica |date=1977 |publisher=Instituto de Estudios Internacionales, Universidad de Chile; Editorial Universitaria. |location=] |url=https://libros.uchile.cl/files/presses/1/monographs/328/submission/proof/38/ |language=es |access-date=30 August 2022 |archive-date=19 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220819190501/https://libros.uchile.cl/files/presses/1/monographs/328/submission/proof/38/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

In the present, sovereignty over regions of Antarctica is claimed by seven countries.<ref name="CIAfactbook-People" /> While a few of these countries have mutually recognised each other's claims,{{sfn|Von Tigerstrom|Leane|2005|p=204}} the validity of the claims is not recognised universally.<ref name="CIAfactbook-People" /> New claims on Antarctica have been suspended since 1959, although in 2015, Norway formally defined Queen Maud Land as including the unclaimed area between it and the South Pole.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Rapp |first1=Ole Magnus |date=21 September 2015 |title=Norge utvider Dronning Maud Land helt frem til Sydpolen |language=no |journal=] |location=Oslo |url=https://www.aftenposten.no/norge/i/dw1q/norge-utvider-dronning-maud-land-helt-frem-til-sydpolen |access-date=21 February 2022 |archive-date=21 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220221161018/https://www.aftenposten.no/norge/i/dw1q/norge-utvider-dronning-maud-land-helt-frem-til-sydpolen |url-status=live }}</ref>

The Argentine, British, and Chilean claims overlap and have caused friction. In 2012, after the British ] designated a previously unnamed area ] in tribute to ]'s ],<ref name="Foreign & Commonwealth Office Press Release">{{cite web|title=The Foreign Secretary has announced that the southern part of British Antarctic Territory has been named Queen Elizabeth Land|url=https://www.gov.uk/government/news/queen-elizabeth-land|work=Foreign & Commonwealth Office|publisher=HM Government|access-date=22 December 2012|date=18 December 2012|archive-date=7 July 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130707184550/https://www.gov.uk/government/news/queen-elizabeth-land|url-status=live}}</ref> the Argentine government protested against the claim.<ref name="BBC News: Argentine Protest Against Queen Elizabeth Land">{{cite web|title=Argentina angry after Antarctic territory named after Queen|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-20822582|work=BBC News|access-date=22 December 2012|date=22 December 2012|archive-date=15 January 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130115192632/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-20822582|url-status=live}}</ref> The UK passed some of the areas it claimed to Australia and New Zealand after they achieved independence. The claims by Britain, Australia, New Zealand, France, and Norway do not overlap and are recognised by each other.{{sfn|Von Tigerstrom|Leane|2005|p=204}} Other member nations of the Antarctic Treaty do not recognise any claim, yet have shown some form of territorial interest in the past.<ref name="peecug2">{{cite web|url=http://www.afese.com/img/revistas/revista40/laantartida.pdf|date=1988|website=AFESE|title=La Antartida|last1=Ribadeneira|first1=Diego|language=Spanish|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110707092226/http://www.afese.com/img/revistas/revista40/laantartida.pdf |archive-date=7 July 2011|access-date=19 July 2011}}</ref>
* {{flagu|Brazil}} has a designated "]" that is not an actual claim.<ref name="Morris1988">{{harvnb |Morris|1988|page=219}}</ref>
* {{flagu|Peru}} formally reserved its right to make a claim.<ref name="peecug2"/>
* {{flagu|Russia}} inherited the Soviet Union's right to claim territory under the original Antarctic Treaty.<ref name="CIAfactbook-US-RusClaim">{{cite web|title=Disputes – international|date=2011|work=The World Factbook|publisher=]|url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/print_2070.html|access-date=22 October 2011|quote=... the US and Russia reserve the right to make claims ...|archive-date=15 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200915211616/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/print_2070.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>
* {{flagu|South Africa}} formally reserved its right to make a claim.<ref name="peecug2"/>
* {{flagu|United States|name=The United States}} reserved its right to make a claim in the original Antarctic Treaty.<ref name="CIAfactbook-US-RusClaim"/>
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|- |-
! scope="col" | Date
| {{flagcountry|Argentina}}
! scope="col" | Claimant
| ]
! scope="col" | Territory
| {{coor d Antarctic|25|W}} to {{coor d Antarctic|74|W}}
! scope="col" | Claim limits
| 1943
! scope="col" class="unsortable" | Map
|- |-
| 1840
| {{flagcountry|Australia}}
| {{flag|France}}
| ]
| {{flag|Adélie Land}}
| {{coor d Antarctic|160|E}} to {{coor dm Antarctic|142|2|W}} and {{coor dm Antarctic|136|11|W}} to {{coor dm Antarctic|44|38|E}}
| data-sort-value="+136.11" | Originally undefined; later specified to be 142°2{{prime}}E to 136°11{{prime}}E
| 1933
| ]
|- |-
| 1908
| {{flagcountry|Chile}}
| {{flagicon|United Kingdom}} United Kingdom
| ]
| {{coor d Antarctic|53|W}} to {{coor d Antarctic|90|W}} | {{flag|British Antarctic Territory}}
| data-sort-value="-080.00" | 80°0{{prime}}W to 20°0{{prime}}W
| 1940
* 80°0{{prime}}W to 74°0{{prime}}W claimed by Chile (1940)
|-
* 74°0{{prime}}W to 53°0{{prime}}W claimed by Chile (1940) and Argentina (1943)
| {{flagcountry|France}}
* 53°0{{prime}}W to 25°0{{prime}}W claimed by Argentina (1943)
| ]

| {{coor dm Antarctic|142|2|E}} to {{coor dm Antarctic|136|11|E}}
| ]
| 1924
|- |-
| {{flagcountry|New Zealand}}
| ]
| {{coor d Antarctic|150|W}} to {{coor d Antarctic|160|E}}
| 1923 | 1923
| {{flagicon|New Zealand}} ]
| ] ]
| data-sort-value="+160.00" | 160°0{{prime}}E to 150°0{{prime}}W
| ]
|-
| 1931
| {{flag|Norway}}
| {{flag|Peter I Island}}
| data-sort-value="-090.35" | {{Coord|68|50|S|90|35|W|type:isle|name=Peter I Island}}
| ]
|-
| 1933
| {{flag|Australia}}
| {{flag|Australian Antarctic Territory}}
| data-sort-value="+044.38" | 44°38{{prime}}E to 136°11{{prime}}E, and 142°2{{prime}}E to 160°00{{prime}}E
| ]
|- |-
| rowspan="2" | {{flagcountry|Norway}}
| ]
| {{coor dm Antarctic|44|38|E}} to {{coor d Antarctic|20|W}}
| 1939 | 1939
| {{flag|Norway}}
| {{flag|Queen Maud Land}}
| data-sort-value="-020.00" | 20°00{{prime}}W to 44°38{{prime}}E
| ]
|- |-
| 1940
| ]
| {{flag|Chile}}
| {{coor dm|68|50|S|90|35|W|}}
| {{flag|Chilean Antarctic Territory}}
| 1929
| data-sort-value="-090.00" | 90°0{{prime}}W to 53°0{{prime}}W
* 80°00{{prime}}W to 74°00{{prime}}W claimed by the United Kingdom (1908)
* 74°00{{prime}}W to 53°00{{prime}}W claimed by the United Kingdom (1908) and Argentina (1943)

| ]
|- |-
| 1943
| {{flagcountry|United Kingdom}}
| {{flag|Argentina}}
| ]
| {{flag|Argentine Antarctica}}
| {{coor d Antarctic|20|W}} to {{coor d Antarctic|80|W}}
| data-sort-value="-074.00" | 74°0{{prime}}W to 25°0{{prime}}W
| 1908
* 74°0{{prime}}W to 53°0{{prime}}W claimed by the United Kingdom (1908) and Chile (1940)
* 53°0{{prime}}W to 25°0{{prime}}W claimed by the United Kingdom (1908)

| ]
|- |-
| None |
| Unclaimed territory | '']''
| {{flagdeco|Antarctica}} ]
| {{coor d Antarctic|90|W}} to {{coor d Antarctic|150|W}}
| data-sort-value="-150.00" | 150°0{{prime}}W to 90°0{{prime}}W<br /> (except ])
|
| ]
|} |}


==Economy and tourism==
The Argentine, British and Chilean claims all overlap. ] has the greatest claim of Antarctic territory.
{{Main|Tourism in Antarctica}}
{{See also|Telecommunications in Antarctica|Transport in Antarctica|Crime in Antarctica}}
] '']'' in ]]]
Deposits of coal, ]s, iron ore, ], ], ], ], ], and other minerals have been found in Antarctica, but not in large enough quantities to extract.<ref>{{cite web|title=Natural Resources |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/field/natural-resources/ |work=] |publisher=] |access-date=7 May 2022 |archive-date=3 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220403171729/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/field/natural-resources/ |url-status=live}}</ref> The Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty, which came into effect in 1998 and is due to be reviewed in 2048, restricts the exploitation of Antarctic resources, including minerals.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.internationalaffairs.org.au/australianoutlook/antarctica-the-montreal-protocol-25-years-on/|title=Antarctica: The Madrid Protocol 25 Years On|website=]|last1=Press|first1=Tony|date=5 October 2016|access-date=19 January 2022|archive-date=18 January 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220118232426/https://www.internationalaffairs.org.au/australianoutlook/antarctica-the-montreal-protocol-25-years-on/|url-status=live}}</ref>


] have been ] since 1957.{{sfn|Trewby|2002|pp=187{{ndash}}188}} Tourism is subject to the provisions of the Antarctic Treaty and Environmental Protocol;<ref name="IAATOTou">{{cite web |title=During Your Visit |url=https://iaato.org/visiting-antarctica/during-your-visit/ |publisher=] |access-date=14 February 2022 |archive-date=7 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200607133821/https://iaato.org/visiting-antarctica/during-your-visit/ |url-status=live }}</ref> the self-regulatory body for the industry is the ].{{sfn|Trewby|2002|p=107}} Tourists arrive by small or medium ship at specific scenic locations with accessible concentrations of iconic wildlife.{{sfn|Trewby|2002|pp=187{{ndash}}188}} Over 74,000 tourists visited the region during the 2019–2020 season, of which 18,500 travelled on cruise ships but did not leave them to explore on land.<ref name="IAATOTou2">{{cite web |title=IAATO Antarctic visitor figures 2019–2020 |url=https://iaato.org/information-resources/data-statistics/ |website=Data & Statistics |publisher=] |access-date=14 February 2022 |date=July 2020 |archive-date=9 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200609114607/https://iaato.org/information-resources/data-statistics/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The numbers of tourists fell rapidly after the start of the ]. Some nature conservation groups have expressed concern over the potential adverse effects caused by the influx of visitors and have called for limits on the size of visiting ]s and a tourism quota.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Rowe |first1=Mark |title=Tourism threatens the Antarctic |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/734551/Tourism-%27threatens-Antarctic%27.html |access-date=5 February 2006 |work=] |date=11 February 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080224214327/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/734551/Tourism-%27threatens-Antarctic%27.html |archive-date=24 February 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The primary response by Antarctic Treaty parties has been to develop guidelines that set landing limits and closed or restricted zones on the more frequently visited sites.<ref name="Secr">{{cite web |title=Tourism and Non-Governmental Activities |url=https://www.ats.aq/e/tourism.html |publisher=Secretariat of the Antarctic Treaty |access-date=7 February 2022 |archive-date=30 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190930150027/https://www.ats.aq/e/tourism.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
] also maintained a claim to Antarctica, known as ], between 1939 and 1945. It was situated from {{coor d Antarctic|20|E}} to {{coor d Antarctic|10|W}}, overlapping Norway's claim. The claim was abandoned after the fall of Nazi Germany in 1945.


Tourism in Antarctica is, in part, ecologically focused with expeditions being offered for bird watching tours due to the high numbers of ], ], and ]s{{snd}}among other species. One site in particular{{snd}}McDonald Beach{{snd}}is known to be a high-traffic area for tourists watching the Adélie penguins who number more than 40,000.<ref>{{Cite web |title=BirdLife Data Zone |url=https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/mcdonald-beach-cape-bird-iba-antarctica |access-date=2024-08-21 |website=datazone.birdlife.org}}</ref>
==Economy==
{{main|Economy of Antarctica}}
] has led to several arrests. Pictured here is the ], a sister species.]]


Overland sightseeing flights operated out of Australia and New Zealand until the ] in 1979, when an ] plane crashed into Mount Erebus, killing all of the 257 people on board. ] resumed commercial overflights to Antarctica from Australia in the mid-1990s.{{sfn|Day|2013|pp=507{{ndash}}509}} There are many ] in Antarctica.
Although ], ]s, ], ], ], ], ], ] and other minerals have been found, they have not been located in large enough quantities to exploit. The ] ] also restricts a struggle for resources. In ], a compromise agreement was reached to add a 50-year ban on mining until the year ], further limiting economic development and exploitation. The primary agricultural activity is the capture and offshore trading of fish. Antarctic fisheries in 2000-01 reported landing 112,934&nbsp;tonnes.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.biosbcc.net/ocean/AAimportance.htm|title=Importance of Antarctica|publisher=Santa Barbara City College Biological Sciences|accessdate=2006-02-05}}</ref>


== Research ==
]
{{Main|Research stations in Antarctica}}
Small-scale ] has existed since 1957 and is currently largely self-regulated by the ] (IAATO). However, not all vessels associated with Antarctic tourism are members of IAATO. Several ]s transport people to Antarctica to visit specific scenic locations. A total of 27,950 tourists visited in the 2004-05 Antarctic summer with nearly all of them coming from commercial ships. The number is predicted to increase to over 80,000 by ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.iaato.org/tourism_stats.html|title=Tourism Statistics|publisher=International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators|accessdate=2006-03-04}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.knet.co.za/antarctica/political.htm|title=Politics of Antarctica|accessdate=2006-02-05}}</ref> There has been some recent concern over the adverse environmental and ecosystem effects caused by the influx of visitors. A call for stricter regulations for ships and a tourism quota have been made by some environmentalists and scientists.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/main.jhtml?xml=/travel/2006/02/11/etnewsant.xml&sSheet=/travel/2006/02/11/ixtrvhome.html|title=''Tourism threatens Antarctic''|publisher=''Telegraph UK''|accessdate=2006-02-05}}</ref> Antarctic sight seeing flights (which did not land) operated out of Australia and New Zealand until the fatal crash of ] in ] on ], which killed all 257 aboard. ] resumed commercial overflights to Antarctica from Australia in the mid-1990s.
], the largest ]]]
In 2017, there were more than 4,400 scientists undertaking research in Antarctica, a number that fell to just over 1,100 in the winter.<ref name="CIAfactbook-People"/> There are over 70 permanent and seasonal research stations on the continent; the largest, United States' ], is capable of housing more than 1,000 people.{{sfn|Hund|2014|p=41}}<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Davis|first=Georgina|date=30 January 2017|title=A history of McMurdo Station through its architecture|journal=Polar Record|publisher=Cambridge University Press|volume=53|issue=2|pages=167–185|doi=10.1017/S0032247416000747|bibcode=2017PoRec..53..167D |s2cid=132258248|doi-access=free}}</ref> The ] has five major research stations on Antarctica, one of which is completely portable. The Belgian ] is one of the most modern stations and the first to be ].{{Sfn|Carroll|Lopes|2019|p=160}} Argentina, Australia, Chile, and Russia also have a large scientific presence on Antarctica.<ref name="CIAfactbook-People" />


]s primarily study ], ]s, and the breakup of Gondwana. ]s study the history and dynamics of floating ice, ], glaciers, and ice sheets. ]s, in addition to researching wildlife, are interested in how low temperatures and the presence of humans affect adaptation and survival strategies in organisms.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Stoddart |first1=Michael |title='Antarctic biology in the 21st century – Advances in, and beyond the international polar year 2007–2008' |journal=Polar Science |date=August 2010 |volume=4 |issue=2 |pages=97–101 |doi=10.1016/j.polar.2010.04.004 |bibcode=2010PolSc...4...97S }}</ref> ]s have made discoveries concerning the spreading of ]es and the body's response to extreme seasonal temperatures.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.antarctica.gov.au/science/technology-innovation/human-biology-and-medicine/|title=Human Biology and Medicine|website=Australian Antarctic Programme|date=16 September 2020|access-date=8 February 2021|archive-date=22 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200822181126/https://www.antarctica.gov.au/science/technology-innovation/human-biology-and-medicine/|url-status=live}}</ref>], ] on display at the ]]]
==Transport==
The high elevation of the interior, the low temperatures, and the length of polar nights during the winter months all allow for better ] at Antarctica than anywhere else on Earth.
{{main|Transport in Antarctica}}
Transport on the continent has transformed from heroic explorers crossing the isolated remote area of Antarctica on foot to a more open area due to human technologies enabling more convenient and faster transport by land and predominantly air and water.


The view of space from Earth is improved by a thinner atmosphere at higher elevations and a lack of water vapour in the atmosphere caused by freezing temperatures.<ref name="Bur">{{cite journal |last1=Burton |first1=Michael G. |author1-link=Michael G. Burton |title=Astronomy in Antarctica |journal=] |date=2010 |volume=18 |issue=4 |pages=417{{ndash}}469 |doi=10.1007/s00159-010-0032-2 |arxiv=1007.2225 |bibcode=2010A&ARv..18..417B |s2cid=16843819 }}</ref> ] at the ] study ] and ]s from space.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nsf.gov/news/special_reports/livingsouthpole/sciencegoals.jsp|title=Science Goals: Celebrating a Century of Science and Exploration|website=National Science Foundation|date=2011|access-date=19 January 2022|archive-date=29 December 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071229073352/https://www.nsf.gov/news/special_reports/livingsouthpole/sciencegoals.jsp|url-status=live}}</ref>
==Research==
] and 25-second exposure allowed sufficient light for this photo to be taken at ] during the long Antarctic night. The new station can be seen at far left, the ] in the center and the old mechanic's garage in the lower right. The green light in the background is the ].]]
{{seealso|List of research stations in Antarctica}}


The largest ] in the world, the ], is at the Amundsen-Scott Station. It consists of around 5,500 ], some of which reach a depth of {{cvt|2450|m}}, that are held in {{convert|1|km3|abbr=unit}} of ice.<ref name="icecube">{{cite news |title=IceCube Quick Facts |url=https://icecube.wisc.edu/about-us/facts/ |website=] |access-date=6 February 2022 |archive-date=13 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210213095824/https://icecube.wisc.edu/about-us/facts/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Scientists also observed higher radiation dose rates around the coast of Antarctica compared with the global average: this is attributed to cosmic rays going through the thinner atmosphere compared to equatorial latitudes.<ref name="k910">{{cite journal | last1=Długosz-Lisiecka | first1=Magdalena | last2=Krystek | first2=Marcin | last3=Koper | first3=Mariusz | last4=Grala | first4=Tomasz | last5=Leniec-Koper | first5=Hanna | last6=Barasiński | first6=Michał | last7=Talar | first7=Magdalena | last8=Kamiński | first8=Ireneusz | last9=Kibart | first9=Robert | last10=Małecki | first10=Wojciech | last11=Kukliński | first11=Piotr | title=Natural gamma radiation at the sea level around the Antarctic continent recorded south of the 62° parallel | journal=Acta Universitatis Lodziensis. Folia Geographica Physica | issue=20 | date=December 30, 2021 | issn=2353-6063 | doi=10.18778/1427-9711.20.01 | pages=7–12| hdl=11089/41341 | hdl-access=free }}</ref>
Each year, scientists from 27 different nations conduct ]s not reproducible in any other place in the world. In the summer more than 4000 scientists operate ]s; this number decreases to nearly 1000 in the winter.<ref name="cia" /> ] is capable of housing more than 1000 scientists, visitors, and tourists.


Antarctica provides a unique environment for the study of meteorites: the dry polar desert preserves them well, and meteorites older than a million years have been found. They are relatively easy to find, as the dark stone meteorites stand out in a landscape of ice and snow, and the flow of ice accumulates them in certain areas.
Researchers include ], ], ], ], ], ], and ]. Geologists tend to study ], meteorites from ], and resources from the breakup of the supercontinent ]. Glaciologists in Antarctica are concerned with the study of the history and dynamics of floating ], ], ]s, and ]s. Biologists, in addition to examining the wildlife, are interested in how harsh temperatures and the presence of people affect adaptation and survival strategies in a wide variety of organisms. Medical physicians have made discoveries concerning the spreading of viruses and the body's response to extreme seasonal temperatures. Astrophysicists at ] study the celestial dome and ]. Many astronomical observations are better made from the interior of Antarctica than from most surface locations because of the high elevation, which results in a thin atmosphere, and low temperature, which minimizes the amount of water vapour in the atmosphere, thus allowing for a view of space clearer than anywhere else on Earth. Antarctic ice serves as both the shield and the detection medium for the largest ] in the world, built 2&nbsp;km below Amundsen-Scott station.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.antarcticconnection.com/antarctic/science/index.shtml|title=Science in Antarctica|publisher=''Antarctic Connection''|accessdate=2006-02-04}}</ref>


The ], discovered in 1912, was the first to be found. Meteorites contain clues about the composition of the ] and its early development.<ref>{{Cite web |date=9 March 2022 |title=Finding Meteorite Hotspots in Antarctica |url=https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/149554/finding-meteorite-hotspots-in-antarctica |access-date=2 April 2022 |website=Earth Observatory |publisher=NASA |language=en |archive-date=9 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220309063851/https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/149554/finding-meteorite-hotspots-in-antarctica |url-status=live }}</ref> Most meteorites come from asteroids, but a few meteorites found in Antarctica came from the Moon and Mars.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Talbert |first=Tricia |date=14 November 2016 |title=Science from the Sky: NASA Renews Search for Antarctic Meteorites |url=http://www.nasa.gov/feature/science-from-the-sky-nasa-renews-search-for-antarctic-meteorites |access-date=2 April 2022 |website=NASA |archive-date=19 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161119174401/http://www.nasa.gov/feature/science-from-the-sky-nasa-renews-search-for-antarctic-meteorites |url-status=dead }}</ref>{{refn|1=Antarctician meteorites, particularly ] discovered by ], were at the centre of the controversy about possible evidence of ]. Because meteorites in space absorb and record cosmic radiation, the time elapsed since the meteorite hit the Earth can be calculated.<ref name="meteorite">{{cite web|url=http://www-curator.jsc.nasa.gov/antmet/index.cfm|title=Meteorites from Antarctica|publisher=NASA|access-date=9 February 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060306122117/http://www-curator.jsc.nasa.gov/antmet/index.cfm|archive-date=6 March 2006 |url-status=dead}}</ref>|group=note}}
Since the 1970s, an important focus of study has been the ] in the ] above Antarctica. In 1985, three British Scientists working on data they had gathered at ] on the ] discovered the existence of a hole in this layer. In 1998, ] satellite data showed that the Antarctic ] was the largest on record, covering 27&nbsp;million square kilometers. It was eventually determined that the destruction of the ozone was caused by ] emitted by human products. With the ban of CFCs in the ] of ], it is believed that the ozone hole will close up over the next fifty years.


Major scientific organizations in Antarctica have released strategy and action plans focused on advancing national interests and objectives in Antarctica, supporting cutting-edge research to understand the interactions between the Antarctic region and climate systems. The ] (BAS) released a 10-year (2023–2033) strategy report to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to focus on creating sustainable living on ].<ref>{{cite web |title=British Antarctic Survey |url=https://www.bas.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/2239182604BAS-Strategy-2024-2034-1.pdf |website=bas.ac.uk |publisher=British Antarctic Survey |access-date=March 27, 2024}}</ref> Environmental sustainability is named as one of the top focus areas by the BAS strategy, highlighting the main challenge and priority to embed environmental sustainability into everything.<ref>{{cite web |title=British Antarctic Survey |url=https://www.bas.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/2239182604BAS-Strategy-2024-2034-1.pdf |website=bas.ac.uk |publisher=British Antarctic Survey |access-date=March 27, 2024}}</ref>
===Meteorites===
], from ].]]
]s from Antarctica are an important area of study of material formed early in the ]; most are thought to come from ]s, but some may have originated on larger ]s. The first meteorites were found in 1912. In 1969, a Japanese expedition discovered nine meteorites. Most of these meteorites have fallen onto the ] in the last million years. Motion of the ice sheet tends to concentrate the meteorites at blocking locations such as mountain ranges, with wind erosion bringing them to the surface after centuries beneath accumulated snowfall. Compared with meteorites collected in more temperate regions on Earth, the Antarctic meteorites are well-preserved.<ref name="meteorite">{{cite web|url=http://www-curator.jsc.nasa.gov/antmet/index.cfm|title=Meteorites from Antarctica |publisher=NASA| accessdate=2006-02-09}}</ref>


In 2022, the ] (AAP) released a new Strategy and 20-year Action Plan (2022–2036) to modernize its Antarctic program. The global climate system was highlighted as one of the main priorities that will be supported and studied through the AAP Strategy Plan. It emphasizes the importance of understanding the vital role of Antarctica and the Southern Ocean in climate and weather to improve current knowledge and inform management responses.<ref>{{cite web |title=Australian Antarctic Science Strategic Plan |url=https://www.antarctica.gov.au/site/assets/files/53908/australian-antarctic-science-strategic-plan.pdf |publisher=Australian Antarctic Science Council |access-date=March 27, 2024}}
This large collection of meteorites allows a better understanding of the abundance of meteorite types in the solar system and how meteorites relate to asteroids and comets. New types of meteorites and rare meteorites have been found. Among these are pieces blasted off the moon, and probably Mars, by impacts. These specimens, particularly ] discovered by ], are at the center of the controversy about possible evidence of microbial life on Mars. Because meteorites in space absorb and record cosmic radiation, the time elapsed since the meteorite hit the Earth can be determined from laboratory studies. The elapsed time since fall, or terrestrial residence age, of a meteorite represents more information that might be useful in environmental studies of Antarctic ice sheets.<ref name="meteorite" />
</ref>


In 2021, the ] (USAP) released a Midterm Assessment on the 2015 Strategic Vision for Antarctic and Southern Ocean Research, stressing the prominent role of the Southern Ocean in the global carbon cycle and sea level rise.<ref>{{cite book |title=Mid-Term Assessment of Progress on the 2015 Strategic Vision for Antarctic and Southern Ocean Research |date=2021 |publisher=The National Academies Press |doi=10.17226/26338 |isbn=978-0-309-26818-9 |url=https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/26338/mid-term-assessment-of-progress-on-the-2015-strategic-vision-for-antarctic-and-southern-ocean-research |access-date=March 27, 2024}}</ref> The USAP outlines the Changing Antarctic Ice Sheets Initiative as a top priority to enhance understanding of why ice sheets are changing now, and how they will change in the future.<ref>{{cite book |title=Mid-Term Assessment of Progress on the 2015 Strategic Vision for Antarctic and Southern Ocean Research |date=2021 |publisher=The National Academies Press |doi=10.17226/26338 |isbn=978-0-309-26818-9 |url=https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/26338/mid-term-assessment-of-progress-on-the-2015-strategic-vision-for-antarctic-and-southern-ocean-research |access-date=March 27, 2024}}</ref>
In 2006, a team of researchers from ] used gravity measurements by NASA's ] satellites to discover the 300-mile-wide ], which probably formed about 250 million years ago.<ref name="crater">{{cite web| url=http://researchnews.osu.edu/archive/erthboom.htm| title=Big Bang in Antarctica -- Killer Crater Found Under Ice| publisher=Research News| first=Pam Frost| last=Gorder| year=June 1, 2006}}</ref>


]
==See also==
] are a central focus of contemporary climate research due to urgent questions about their stability and reaction to global warming. ] technology enables researchers to study the ice sheets both through on-site fieldwork and ], facilitating detailed analyses of ice dynamics to predict future changes in a warming world.
'''Geographic regions'''
*]
*]
*]
*]
*]
*]
*]
'''Geography'''
*]
*]
*] (Note: refers to permanent residents)
*]
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'''Geopolitics'''
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The INStabilities & Thresholds in ANTarctica (INSTANT) Scientific Research Programme proposes three research themes, investigating the complex interactions between the ], ], and solid ] in Antarctica. Its aims include improving the understanding and predictions of these processes to aid decision makers in risk assessment, management, and mitigation related to Antarctic climate change.
'''Other'''
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]
* '']'', a ] natural history ] series on life on and around Antarctica
* The ], an ]n supply vessel.


The Australian-led ICECAP project utilized advanced aerogeophysical techniques to map deep subglacial basins and ] that connect the ice sheet to the ocean.<ref name="ICE SHEETS AND SEA-LEVEL RISE">{{cite web |title=ICE SHEETS AND SEA-LEVEL RISE |url=https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/weather-and-climate/climate-change/ice-sheets-and-sea-level-rise/ |website=antarctica.gov.au |date=2 February 2014 |publisher=Australian Antarctic Program |access-date=March 27, 2024}}</ref> This mapping improves predictions of ice sheet stability, the impacts of ] on the ice sheets, and their potential contributions to global ].<ref name="ICE SHEETS AND SEA-LEVEL RISE" />
==References==

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==Culture==
<div class="references-small" style="-moz-column-count:2; column-count:2;">
]|Attendees at the 2013 ]]]
<references/>
===Music and film===
</div>
The southernmost music festival in the world, ], has been held at McMurdo Station since 1989. The organizers, performers, and attendees of Icestock are all personnel working at McMurdo or nearby ].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=The Antarctic Sun: News about Antarctica - Icestock Rings in the New Year|url=https://antarcticsun.usap.gov/features/4202/|access-date=2020-12-17|website=antarcticsun.usap.gov}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-01-14|title=24 hours of sunlight — life and aerospace research in Antarctica|url=https://www.colorado.edu/aerospace/2020/01/14/24-hours-sunlight-life-and-aerospace-research-antarctica|access-date=2020-12-17|website=Ann and H.J. Smead Aerospace Engineering Sciences|language=en}}</ref><ref name="o188">{{cite web | last=Griggs | first=Kim | title=Antarctica Rocks Out on Ice | website=archive.wired.com | date=2019-02-20 | url=https://archive.wired.com/culture/lifestyle/news/2001/02/41756 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140915192815/https://archive.wired.com/culture/lifestyle/news/2001/02/41756 | archive-date=2014-09-15 | url-status=dead | access-date=2024-08-26}}</ref> The Antarctic Film Festival is held annually between bases, with 48 stations registered to participate as of 2022. The festival is designed for ]s of 5 minutes or less.<ref name="z325">{{cite web | title=Freddie Mercury in Antarctica | website=Polar Journal | first=Heiner | last=Kubny | date=2022-08-31 | url=https://polarjournal.ch/en/2022/08/31/freddie-mercury-in-antarctica/ | access-date=2024-08-26}}</ref>

In 2011, Australian classical ] ] became the first professional musician to perform in Antarctica.<ref name="k668">{{cite web | last=Macdonald | first=Emma | title=Redundancy forced on acclaimed musicians | website=The Canberra Times | date=2012-11-01 | url=https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/6163985/redundancy-forced-on-acclaimed-musicians/ | access-date=2024-09-03}}</ref> The first full-length fictional film to be shot in Antarctica was '']'', a 2012 low budget British ].<ref name="BBC">{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-19980602 |title=Scot shoots first fictional feature in Antarctica |accessdate=18 October 2012 |work=BBC News|date=17 October 2012 }}</ref> An upcoming film directed by ] and starring ], ''Bruno Penguin and the Staten Island Princess'', will be the first major ] production to shoot in Antarctica. <ref name="b131">{{cite web | title=Anthony Hopkins To Star In Nick Cassavetes' 'Bruno Penguin And The Staten Island Princess'; Shia LaBeouf In Talks | website=Deadline | date=2024-05-14 |url=https://deadline.com/2024/05/anthony-hopkins-to-star-in-bruno-penguin-and-the-staten-island-princess-1235915736/amp/ | access-date=2024-09-04}}</ref>

===Sport===
Sporting events held on Antarctica include the ],<ref name="w567">{{cite web | last=Roman | first=Benjamin | title=Serious about sports at end of the Earth | website=ESPN.com | date=2010-11-03 | url=https://www.espn.com/espn/thelife/news/story?id=5761185 | access-date=2024-08-26}}</ref> ]<ref name="g791">{{cite news | last=Bernstein | first=Lenny | title=Alexandria's Brooke Curran on winning the Antarctica Marathon | newspaper=Washington Post | date=2012-04-02 | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/wellness/alexandrias-brooke-curran-on-winning-the-antarctica-marathon/2012/04/02/gIQAfhWbrS_story.html | access-date=2024-08-26}}</ref> and ].<ref name="n623">{{cite web | title=Antarctica Cup Yacht Race | website=Sail-World.com | date=2007-08-16 | url=https://www.sail-world.com/Australia/Antarctica-Cup-Yacht-Race/-36654 | access-date=2024-08-26}}</ref> ] has been played since the early twentieth century, with teams representing bases or visiting ships.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://asifuch.cl/futbol-en-la-antartica/|title=Fútbol en la Antártica| website= Association of Chilean Football Researchers | date=2020-12-20 | access-date=2024-08-26}}</ref><ref name="y775">{{cite web | title= Antarctica - football/soccer matches | website=RSSSF | date=1911-05-19 | url=https://www.rsssf.org/miscellaneous/zuidpool.html | access-date=2024-08-26}}</ref>

===Holidays===
There are two principal holidays celebrated across Antarctica: ] on the day of the southern ] (June 20 or 21) and ] on December 1, which commemorates the signing of the Antarctic Treaty in 1959.<ref name="d838">{{cite web | title=Midwinter in Antarctica | website=Cool Antarctica | date=1986-06-21 | url=https://www.coolantarctica.com/Community/midwinter_antarctica.php | access-date=2024-08-26}}</ref><ref name="f667">{{cite web | title=Celebrate Antarctica Day on December 1st | website=Arctic Research Consortium of the U.S. | date=2022-12-01 | url=https://www.arcus.org/events/arctic-calendar/33711 | access-date=2024-08-26}}</ref>

== See also ==
* ]

== Notes ==
{{Reflist|group="note"}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Bibliography ==
{{main|Bibliography of Antarctica}}
{{refbegin|30em}}
* {{cite book |editor1-last=Ainsworth |editor1-first=William Harrison |author-link=William Harrison Ainsworth |title=The New Monthly Magazine and Humourist |date=1847 |publisher=] |location=London |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NTUaAQAAIAAJ |chapter=The Antarctic Voyage of Discovery}}
* {{cite book |last1=Anderson |first1=John B. |title=Antarctic Marine Geology |date=2010 |publisher=] |location=Cambridge |isbn=978-05211-3-168-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=f9YqF73oe4IC}}
* {{cite book |last1=Baughmann |first1=T. H. |author1-link=T. H. Baughman |title=Before the Heroes Came |date=1994 |publisher=] |location=Lincoln, Nebraska |isbn=978-0-8032-1228-2 |url=https://archive.org/details/beforeheroescame0000baug/page/n5/mode/2up |url-access=registration}}
* {{cite book |last1=Beaglehole |first1=John C. |author1-link=John Beaglehole |title=The Journals of Captain James Cook on his Voyages of Discovery |date=1968 |publisher=] |location=Cambridge |isbn=978-1-4724-5324-2 |edition=|volume=2}}
* {{cite book |last1=Cameron-Ash |first1=Margaret |title=Lying for the Admiralty |date=2018 |publisher=Rosenberg Publishing |location=Sydney |isbn=978-06480-4-396-6 }}
* {{cite book |last1=|chapter=Chapter 2 the Geology and Geomorphology of Antarctica |chapter-url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0166248108701508 |editor1-last=Campbell |editor1-first=I.B. |editor2-last=Claridge |editor2-first=G.G.C. |title=Antarctica: Soils, Weathering Processes and Environment |date=1987 |publisher=] |location=Amsterdam |isbn=978-0-444-42784-7 |volume=16 |language=|doi=10.1016/S0166-2481(08)70150-8 |issn=0166-2481 |format=|series=Developments in Soil Science |pages=7–42 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Cantrill |first1=David J. |last2=Poole |first2=Imogen |title=The Vegetation of Antarctica through Geological Time |date=2012 |publisher=] |location=Cambridge |isbn=978-1-139-56028-3 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sOGH4xaioRUC}}
* {{cite book |last1=Carroll |first1=Michael |author-link=Michael Carroll (space artist) |last2=Lopes|first2=Rosaly|author2-link=Rosaly Lopes |title=Antarctica : Earth's Own Ice World |date=2019 |publisher=Springer Praxis Books|location=Cham, Switzerland |isbn=978-3-319-74623-4}}
* {{cite book |last1=Cawley |first1=Charles |title=Colonies in Conflict: The History of the British Overseas Territories |date=2015 |publisher=] |location=Newcastle |isbn=978-14438-8-128-9 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TXnWCgAAQBAJ}}
* {{cite book |last1=Crystal |first1=David |author1-link=David Crystal |title=The Fight for English |date=2006 |publisher=] |location=Oxford |isbn=978-0-19-920764-0 |url=https://archive.org/details/fightforenglishh00crys/page/172 |url-access=registration}}
* {{cite book |last1=Day |first1=David |author-link=David Day (historian) |title=Antarctica: A Biography |date=2013 |publisher=] |location=Oxford |isbn=978-0-19-967055-0 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=maNBDJD2OfQC}}
* {{cite book |doi=10.1093/wentk/9780190641320.001.0001 |title=Antarctica |date=2019 |last1=Day |first1=David |isbn=978-0-19-064132-0 }}
* {{cite book |last=Defler |first=Thomas |author-link=Thomas Defler |date=2019 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-HWADwAAQBAJ |title=History of Terrestrial Mammals in South America |series=Topics in Geobiology |place=Cham |publisher=] |isbn=978-3-319-98448-3}}
* {{cite book |editor1-last=Drewry |editor1-first=D.J. |editor1-link=David Drewry |title=Antarctica: Glaciological and Geophysical Folio |date=1983 |publisher=] |location=Cambridge |isbn=978-0-901021-04-5}}
* {{cite book |editor1-last=Edwards |editor1-first=Philip |editor1-link=Philip Edwards (academic) |title=The Journals of James Cook |date=1999 |publisher=] |location=London |isbn=978-0-14-192808-1 |edition=|url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/journalsofcaptai00jame/page/n3/mode/2up}}
* {{cite book |last1=Headland |first1=Robert |title=The Island of South Georgia |date=1984 |publisher=] |location=Cambridge |isbn=978-0-521-25274-4|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lZ04AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA238}}
* {{cite journal|last1=de Hoog|first1=G.S.|date=2005|title=Fungi of the Antarctic: evolution under extreme conditions|url=https://www.studiesinmycology.org/sim/Sim51/SIM_51_Preface.pdf|journal=]|isbn=9789070351557|publisher=]|volume=51|page=}}
* {{cite book |editor1-last=Hund |editor1-first=Andrew J. |title=Antarctica And The Arctic Circle: A Geographic Encyclopedia of the Earth's Polar Regions |date=2014 |publisher=ABC-CLIO, LLC |isbn=978-1-61069-392-9 |page=|volume=1 |url=https://archive.org/details/antarctica-and-the-arctic-circle-2-volumes-a-geographic-encyclopedia-of-the-earths-polar-regions/page/n3/mode/2up?q=}}
* {{cite book |last1=Hyginus |first1=Caius Julius |author1-link=Gaius Julius Hyginus |editor1-last=Viré |editor1-first=Ghislaine |orig-year=1482|title=Hygini de astronomia |date=1992 |publisher=] |location=Stuttgart |isbn=978-35190-1-438-6 |url= |language=Latin}}
* {{cite book |last1=Jasinoski |first1=Sandra C.|display-authors=et al |editor1-last=Kammerer |editor1-first=Christian F. |editor2-last=Frobisch |editor2-first=Jörg |editor3-last=Angielczyk |editor3-first=Kenneth D. |title=Early Evolutionary History of the Synapsida |date=2013 |publisher=] |isbn=978-94-007-6841-3 |chapter=Anatomical Plasticity in the Snout of ''Lystrosaurus'' |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_RDHBAAAQBAJ}}
* {{cite book |last=Joyner |first=Christopher C. |author-link1=Christopher C. Joyner |date=1992 |title=Antarctica and the Law of the Sea |publisher=] |location=Dordrecht |isbn=978-0-7923-1823-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=y6JAr747H60C}}
* {{cite book |last1=Lettinck |first1=Paul |title=Aristotle's Meteorology and Its Reception in the Arab World |date=2021 |publisher=] |location=Leiden; Boston (Massachusetts) |isbn=978-90-04-44917-6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lB0QKKodRzYC}}
* {{cite book |editor1-last=McCrone |editor1-first=David |editor2-last=McPherson |editor2-first=Gayle |title=National Days: Constructing and Mobilising National Identity |date=2009 |publisher=] |location=Basingstoke, UK |isbn=978-02302-5-117-5 |url=https://archive.org/details/nationaldayscons0000unse/page/n5/mode/2up | url-access=registration}}
* {{cite book |last1=Monteath |first1=Colin |title=Hall & Ball Kiwi Mountaineers: from Mount Cook to Everest |date=1997 |publisher=Cloudcap |location=Christchurch |isbn=978-0-938567-42-4}}
* {{cite book |last1=Morris |first1=Michael |title=The Strait of Magellan |date=1988 |publisher=] |location=Dordrecht; London |isbn=978-0-7923-0181-3 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OS-3VdihoooC}}
* {{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WnwzDAAAQBAJ |title=The Ice: A Journey to Antarctica |last1=Pyne|first1=Stephen J. |author-link=Stephen J. Pyne |publisher=] |isbn=978-0-295-80523-8 |date=2017}}
* {{cite book |editor1-last=Riffenburgh |editor1-first=Beau |editor1-link=Beau Riffenburgh |title=Encyclopedia of the Antarctic |volume=1 |date=2007 |publisher=] |location=New York |isbn=978-1-1358-7866-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_mUPEAAAQBAJ }}
* {{cite book |last1=Rohli |first1=Robert V. |last2=Vega |first2=Anthony J. |title=Climatology |date=2018 |publisher=] |location=Burlington, Massachusetts |isbn=978-1-284-12656-3 |edition=4th |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=umokDwAAQBAJ}}
* {{cite book |last1=Russell |first1=Alan |editor1-last=McWhirter |editor1-first=Norris |editor1-link=Norris McWhirter |title=1986 Guinness Book of Records |date=1986 |publisher=] |isbn=978-0-8069-4768-6 |url=https://archive.org/details/1986guinnessbook00mcwh/page/n3/mode/2up |url-access=registration}}
* {{cite book |editor1-last=Scott |editor1-first=Anne W. |editor2-last=Hiatt |editor2-first=Alfred |editor3-last=McIlroy |editor3-first=Claire |title=European Perceptions of Terra Australis |date=2012 |publisher=] |location=Farnham, UK |isbn=978-1-4094-3941-7 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Z4Qe9vX4nbUC}}
* {{cite book |editor1-last=Siegert |editor1-first=Martin |editor2-last=Florindo |editor2-first=Fabio |editor1-link=Martin Siegert |title=Antarctic Climate Evolution |date=2008 |publisher=] |location=Amsterdam |isbn=978-0-08-093161-6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yUu-x70CZEcC}}
* {{cite book |last1=Stromberg |first1=O. |display-authors=et al |editor1-last=Nemoto |editor1-first=Takahisa |editor2-last=Mauchline |editor2-first=John |title=Marine Biology: Its Accomplishment and Future Prospect |date=1991 |publisher=] |isbn=978-0-444-98696-2}}
* {{cite book |editor1-last=Stonehouse |editor1-first=Bernard |editor1-link=Bernard Stonehouse |title=Encyclopedia of Antarctica and the Southern Oceans |date=2002 |publisher=] |location=Chichester |isbn=978-0-471-98665-2}}
* {{cite book |last1=Thomas |first1=David Neville |title=Surviving Antarctica |date=2007 |publisher=] |location=London |isbn=978-0-565-09217-7 |edition=|url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/survivingantarct0000thom/page/n1/mode/2up}}
* {{cite book |editor1-last=Von Tigerstrom |editor1-first=Barbara |editor2-last=Leane |editor2-first=Geoffrey W. G. |title=International Law Issues in the South Pacific |date=2005 |publisher=] |location=Aldershot, UK; Burlington, Vermont |isbn=978-0-7546-4419-4 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0_dADwAAQBAJ}}
* {{cite book |editor1-last=Trewby |editor1-first=Mary |title=Antarctica: An Encyclopedia from Abbott Ice Shelf to Zooplankton |date=2002 |publisher=Firefly Books |location=Buffalo, New York |isbn=978-1-55297-590-9 |edition=|url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/trent_0116404808481/page/n5/mode/2up}}
* {{cite web |title=British Antarctic Survey |url=https://www.bas.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/2239182604BAS-Strategy-2024-2034-1.pdf |website=bas.ac.uk |publisher=British Antarctic Survey |access-date=March 27, 2024}}
* {{cite web |title=Australian Antarctic Science Strategic Plan |url=https://www.antarctica.gov.au/site/assets/files/53908/australian-antarctic-science-strategic-plan.pdf |publisher=Australian Antarctic Science Council |access-date=March 27, 2024}}
* {{cite book |title=Mid-Term Assessment of Progress on the 2015 Strategic Vision for Antarctic and Southern Ocean Research |date=2021 |publisher=The National Academies Press |doi=10.17226/26338 |isbn=978-0-309-26818-9 |url=https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/26338/mid-term-assessment-of-progress-on-the-2015-strategic-vision-for-antarctic-and-southern-ocean-research |access-date=March 27, 2024}}
* {{cite web |title=ICE SHEETS AND SEA-LEVEL RISE |url=https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/weather-and-climate/climate-change/ice-sheets-and-sea-level-rise/ |website=antarctica.gov.au |date=2 February 2014 |publisher=Australian Antarctic Program |access-date=March 27, 2024}}
{{refend}}

== Further reading ==
* De Pomereu, Jean; and McCahey, Daniella. ''Antarctica: A History in 100 Objects'' (Conway, 2022)
* {{cite book |last= Kleinschmidt |first= Georg |date=2021 |url= https://www.schweizerbart.de/publications/detail/isbn/9783443110345/Kleinschmidt_ed_The_Geology_of_the_A|title=The geology of the Antarctic continent |place=Stuttgart |publisher=Bornträger Science Publisher|isbn=978-3-443-11034-5}}
* {{cite book |last1=Lucas |first1=Mike |title=Antarctica |date=1996 |publisher=] |isbn=978-1-85368-743-3|url=https://archive.org/details/antarctica0000luca/page/n5/mode/2up |url-access=registration |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last1=Mardon |first1=Austin Albert |last2=Mardon |first2=Catherine |author1-link=Austin Mardon |author2-link=Catherine Mardon |title=The use of geographic remote sensing, mapping and aerial photography to aid in the recovery of blue ice surficial meteorites in Antarctica |date=2009 |publisher=Golden Meteorite Press |location=Edmonton |isbn=978-18974-7-235-4 |page=|via=] |pages=|url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/useofgeographicr0000mard/page/n7/mode/2up?view=theater |ref=none}}
* {{cite book|first1=John|last1=Stewart|url=https://epdf.tips/antarctica-an-encyclopedia-2-volume-set-second-edition.html|title=Antarctica: An Encyclopedia|location=Jefferson, N.C. and London|publisher=McFarland|year=2011|isbn=978-0-7864-3590-6|ref=none}}
* Ivanov, Lyubomir; Ivanova, Nusha (2022). ''The World of Antarctica''. Generis Publishing. 241 pp. {{ISBN|979-8-88676-403-1}}


==External links== ==External links==
{{wikisource|CIA World Fact Book, 2004/Antarctica}} {{Spoken Misplaced Pages|date=2023-12-16|En-Antarctica-article.ogg}}
{{Sister project links|auto=1|wikt=n|s=y|v=y|b=n|collapsible=collapsed}}
{{sisterlinks|Antarctica}}
*, ''de facto'' government * {{Official website|http://www.ats.aq/}} of the Antarctic Treaty Secretariat (de facto government)
* High resolution map (2022) – (])
*{{dmoz|Regional/Polar_Regions/Antarctic/|Antarctic region}}
* {{In Our Time|Antarctica.|b00ss2th|"Antarctica"}}
* from the ]
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Latest revision as of 03:04, 25 December 2024

Earth's southernmost continent This article is about the continent. For the region, see Antarctic. For other uses, see Antarctica (disambiguation). "Antipodea" redirects here. For Australia and New Zealand, see Australasia.

Antarctica
This map uses an orthographic projection, near-polar aspect. The South Pole is near the center, where longitudinal lines converge.
Area14,200,000 km
5,500,000 sq mi
Population1,300 to 5,100 (seasonal)
Population density0.00009/km to 0.00036/km (seasonal)
Countries7 territorial claims
Time zonesAll time zones
Internet TLD.aq
Largest settlements
UN M49 code010
Composite satellite image of Antarctica (2002)
Apollo 4 photograph with Antarctica at top, 1967

Antarctica (/ænˈtɑːrktɪkə/ ) is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest continent, being about 40% larger than Europe, and has an area of 14,200,000 km (5,500,000 sq mi). Most of Antarctica is covered by the Antarctic ice sheet, with an average thickness of 1.9 km (1.2 mi).

Antarctica is, on average, the coldest, driest, and windiest of the continents, and it has the highest average elevation. It is mainly a polar desert, with annual precipitation of over 200 mm (8 in) along the coast and far less inland. About 70% of the world's freshwater reserves are frozen in Antarctica, which, if melted, would raise global sea levels by almost 60 metres (200 ft). 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 the summer. Native species of animals include mites, nematodes, penguins, seals and tardigrades. Where vegetation occurs, it is mostly in the form of lichen or moss.

The ice shelves of Antarctica were probably first seen in 1820, during a Russian expedition led by Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen and Mikhail Lazarev. The decades that followed saw further exploration by French, American, and British expeditions. The first confirmed landing was by a Norwegian team in 1895. In the early 20th century, there were a few expeditions into the interior of the continent. British explorers Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackleton were the first to reach the magnetic South Pole in 1909, and the geographic South Pole was first reached in 1911 by Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen.

Antarctica is governed by about 30 countries, all of which are parties of the 1959 Antarctic Treaty System. According to the terms of the treaty, military activity, mining, nuclear explosions, and nuclear waste disposal are all prohibited in Antarctica. Tourism, fishing and research are the main human activities in and around Antarctica. During the summer months, about 5,000 people reside at research stations, a figure that drops to around 1,000 in the winter. Despite the continent's remoteness, human activity has a significant effect on it via pollution, ozone depletion, and climate change. The melting of the potentially unstable West Antarctic ice sheet causes the most uncertainty in century-scale projections of sea level rise, and the same melting also affects the Southern Ocean overturning circulation, which can eventually lead to significant impacts on the Southern Hemisphere climate and Southern Ocean productivity.

Etymology

17th century map of the Antarctic region
A speculative representation of Antarctica labelled as 'Terra Australis Incognita' on Jan Janssonius's Zeekaart van het Zuidpoolgebied (1657), Het Scheepvaartmuseum

The name given to the continent originates from the word antarctic, which comes from Middle French antartique or antarctique ('opposite to the Arctic') and, in turn, the Latin antarcticus ('opposite to the north'). Antarcticus is derived from the Greek ἀντι- ('anti-') and ἀρκτικός ('of the Bear', 'northern'). The Greek philosopher Aristotle wrote in Meteorology about an "Antarctic region" in c. 350 BCE. The Greek geographer Marinus of Tyre reportedly used the name in his world map from the second century CE, now lost. The Roman authors Gaius Julius Hyginus and Apuleius used for the South Pole the romanised Greek name polus antarcticus, from which derived the Old French pole antartike (modern pôle antarctique) attested in 1270, and from there the Middle English pol antartik, found first in a treatise written by the English author Geoffrey Chaucer.

Belief by Europeans in the existence of a Terra Australis—a vast continent in the far south of the globe to balance the northern lands of Europe, Asia, and North Africa—had existed as an intellectual concept since classical antiquity. The belief in such a land lasted until the European discovery of Australia.

During the early 19th century, explorer Matthew Flinders doubted the existence of a detached continent south of Australia (then called New Holland) and thus advocated for the "Terra Australis" name to be used for Australia instead. In 1824, the colonial authorities in Sydney officially renamed the continent of New Holland to Australia, leaving the term "Terra Australis" unavailable as a reference to Antarctica. Over the following decades, geographers used phrases such as "the Antarctic Continent". They searched for a more poetic replacement, suggesting names such as Ultima and Antipodea. Antarctica was adopted in the 1890s, with the first use of the name being attributed to the Scottish cartographer John George Bartholomew.

Antarctica has also been known by the moniker Great White South, after which British photographer Herbert Ponting named one of his books on Antarctic photography, possibly as a counterpart to the epithet Great White North for Canada.

Geography

Main article: Geography of Antarctica See also: Extreme points of Antarctica, List of mountains in Antarctica, List of ultras of Antarctica, and List of places in Antarctica
map of Antarctica
Eastern Antarctica is to the right of the Transantarctic Mountains and Western Antarctica is to the left.

Positioned asymmetrically around the South Pole and largely south of the Antarctic Circle (one of the five major circles of latitude that mark maps of the world), Antarctica is surrounded by the Southern Ocean. Rivers exist in Antarctica; the longest is the Onyx. Antarctica covers more than 14.2 million km (5,500,000 sq mi), almost double the area of Australia, making it the fifth-largest continent, and comparable to the surface area of Pluto. Its coastline is almost 18,000 km (11,200 mi) long: as of 1983, of the four coastal types, 44% of the coast is floating ice in the form of an ice shelf, 38% consists of ice walls that rest on rock, 13% is ice streams or the edge of glaciers, and the remaining 5% is exposed rock.

The lakes that lie at the base of the continental ice sheet occur mainly in the McMurdo Dry Valleys or various oases. Lake Vostok, discovered beneath Russia's Vostok Station, is the largest subglacial lake globally and one of the largest lakes in the world. It was once believed that the lake had been sealed off for millions of years, but scientists now estimate its water is replaced by the slow melting and freezing of ice caps every 13,000 years. During the summer, the ice at the edges of the lakes can melt, and liquid moats temporarily form. Antarctica has both saline and freshwater lakes.

Antarctica is divided into West Antarctica and East Antarctica by the Transantarctic Mountains, which stretch from Victoria Land to the Ross Sea. The vast majority of Antarctica is covered by the Antarctic ice sheet, which averages 1.9 km (1.2 mi) in thickness. The ice sheet extends to all but a few oases, which, with the exception of the McMurdo Dry Valleys, are located in coastal areas. Several Antarctic ice streams flow to one of the many Antarctic ice shelves, a process described by ice-sheet dynamics.

photograph of Vinson Massif
Vinson Massif from the northwest, the highest peak in Antarctica

East Antarctica comprises Coats Land, Queen Maud Land, Enderby Land, Mac. Robertson Land, Wilkes Land, and Victoria Land. All but a small portion of the region lies within the Eastern Hemisphere. East Antarctica is largely covered by the East Antarctic Ice Sheet. There are numerous islands surrounding Antarctica, most of which are volcanic and very young by geological standards. The most prominent exceptions to this are the islands of the Kerguelen Plateau, the earliest of which formed around 40 Ma.

Vinson Massif, in the Ellsworth Mountains, is the highest peak in Antarctica at 4,892 m (16,050 ft). Mount Erebus on Ross Island is the world's southernmost active volcano and erupts around 10 times each day. Ash from eruptions has been found 300 kilometres (190 mi) from the volcanic crater. There is evidence of a large number of volcanoes under the ice, which could pose a risk to the ice sheet if activity levels were to rise. The ice dome known as Dome Argus in East Antarctica is the highest Antarctic ice feature, at 4,091 metres (13,422 ft). It is one of the world's coldest and driest places—temperatures there may reach as low as −90 °C (−130 °F), and the annual precipitation is 1–3 cm (0.39–1.18 in).

Geologic history

Main article: Geology of AntarcticaFurther information: Geology of the Antarctic Peninsula

From the end of the Neoproterozoic era to the Cretaceous, Antarctica was part of the supercontinent Gondwana. Modern Antarctica was formed as Gondwana gradually broke apart beginning around 183 Ma. For a large proportion of the Phanerozoic, Antarctica had a tropical or temperate climate, and it was covered in forests.

Paleozoic era (540–250 Ma)

Glossopteris sp. leaf from the Permian of Antarctica

During the Cambrian period, Gondwana had a mild climate. West Antarctica was partially in the Northern Hemisphere, and during the time, large amounts of sandstones, limestones, and shales were deposited. East Antarctica was at the equator, where seafloor invertebrates and trilobites flourished in the tropical seas. By the start of the Devonian period (416 Ma), Gondwana was in more southern latitudes, and the climate was cooler, though fossils of land plants are known from then. Sand and silts were laid down in what is now the Ellsworth, Horlick, and Pensacola Mountains.

Antarctica became glaciated during the Late Paleozoic icehouse beginning at the end of the Devonian period (360 Ma), though glaciation would substantially increase during the late Carboniferous. It drifted closer to the South Pole, and the climate cooled, though flora remained. After deglaciation during the latter half of the Early Permian, the land became dominated by glossopterids (an extinct group of seed plants with no close living relatives), most prominently Glossopteris, a tree interpreted as growing in waterlogged soils, which formed extensive coal deposits. Other plants found in Antarctica during the Permian include Cordaitales, sphenopsids, ferns, and lycophytes. At the end of the Permian, the climate became drier and hotter over much of Gondwana, and the glossopterid forest ecosystems collapsed, as part of the End-Permian mass extinction. There is no evidence of any tetrapods having lived in Antarctica during the Paleozoic.

Mesozoic era (250–66 Ma)

The continued warming dried out much of Gondwana. During the Triassic, Antarctica was dominated by seed ferns (pteridosperms) belonging to the genus Dicroidium, which grew as trees. Other associated Triassic flora included ginkgophytes, cycadophytes, conifers, and sphenopsids. Tetrapods first appeared in Antarctica during the early Triassic, with the earliest known fossils found in the Fremouw Formation of the Transantarctic Mountains. Synapsids (also known as "mammal-like reptiles") included species such as Lystrosaurus, and were common during the Early Triassic.

The Antarctic Peninsula began to form during the Jurassic period (206 to 146 million years ago). Africa separated from Antarctica in the Jurassic around 160 Ma, followed by the Indian subcontinent in the early Cretaceous (about 125 Ma). Ginkgo trees, conifers, Bennettitales, horsetails, ferns and cycads were plentiful during the time. In West Antarctica, coniferous forests dominated throughout the Cretaceous period (146–66 Ma), though southern beech trees (Nothofagus) became prominent towards the end of the Cretaceous. Ammonites were common in the seas around Antarctica, and dinosaurs were also present, though only a few Antarctic dinosaur genera (Cryolophosaurus and Glacialisaurus, from the Early Jurassic Hanson Formation of the Transantarctic Mountains, and Antarctopelta, Trinisaura, Morrosaurus and Imperobator from Late Cretaceous of the Antarctic Peninsula) have been described.

Breakup of Gondwana at c. 150 Ma (1st), c. 126 Ma (2nd) and at c. 83 Ma (3rd)

Cenozoic era before present (66–10 Ma)

The flora and fauna of Antarctica before the present was similar to the one from Southern America today, as well as Australia and New Zealand, which it spread to over Antarctica.

During the early Paleogene, Antarctica remained connected to South America as well as to southeastern Australia. Fauna from the La Meseta Formation in the Antarctic Peninsula, dating to the Eocene, is very similar to equivalent South American faunas; with marsupials, xenarthrans, litoptern, and astrapotherian ungulates, as well as gondwanatheres and possibly meridiolestidans. Marsupials are thought to have dispersed into Australia via Antarctica by the early Eocene.

Around 53 Ma, Australia-New Guinea separated from Antarctica, opening the Tasmanian Passage. The Drake Passage opened between Antarctica and South America around 30 Ma, resulting in the creation of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current that completely isolated the continent. Models of Antarctic geography suggest that this current, as well as a feedback loop caused by lowering CO2 levels, caused the creation of small yet permanent polar ice caps. As CO2 levels declined further the ice began to spread rapidly, replacing the forests that until then had covered Antarctica. Tundra ecosystems continued to exist on Antarctica until around 14-10 million years ago, when further cooling lead to their extermination.

Present day

map of the tectonic plates of the southern hemisphere
The Antarctic Plate

The geology of Antarctica, largely obscured by the continental ice sheet, is being revealed by techniques such as remote sensing, ground-penetrating radar, and satellite imagery. Geologically, West Antarctica closely resembles the South American Andes. The Antarctic Peninsula was formed by geologic uplift and the transformation of sea bed sediments into metamorphic rocks.

West Antarctica was formed by the merging of several continental plates, which created a number of mountain ranges in the region, the most prominent being the Ellsworth Mountains. The presence of the West Antarctic Rift System has resulted in volcanism along the border between West and East Antarctica, as well as the creation of the Transantarctic Mountains.

East Antarctica is geologically varied. Its formation began during the Archean Eon (4,000 Ma–2,500 Ma), and stopped during the Cambrian Period. It is built on a craton of rock, which is the basis of the Precambrian Shield. On top of the base are coal and sandstones, limestones, and shales that were laid down during the Devonian and Jurassic periods to form the Transantarctic Mountains. In coastal areas such as the Shackleton Range and Victoria Land, some faulting has occurred.

Coal was first recorded in Antarctica near the Beardmore Glacier by Frank Wild on the Nimrod Expedition in 1907, and low-grade coal is known to exist across many parts of the Transantarctic Mountains. The Prince Charles Mountains contain deposits of iron ore. There are oil and natural gas fields in the Ross Sea.

Climate

Main article: Climate of Antarctica Photograph of blue ice on water in the foreground, with a snowy mountain in the backgroundBlue ice covering Lake Fryxell, in the Transantarctic MountainsTwo men looking at a penguin on a sunny dayTemperate conditions near the coast in December

Antarctica is the coldest, windiest, and driest of Earth's continents. Near the coast, the temperature can exceed 10 °C in summer and fall to below −40 °C in winter. Over the elevated inland, it can rise to about −30 °C in summer but fall below −80 °C in winter.

The lowest natural air temperature ever recorded on Earth was −89.2 °C (−128.6 °F) at the Russian Vostok Station in Antarctica on 21 July 1983. A lower air temperature of −94.7 °C (−138.5 °F) was recorded in 2010 by satellite—however, it may have been influenced by ground temperatures and was not recorded at a height of 2 m (7 ft) above the surface as required for official air temperature records.

Antarctica is a polar desert with little precipitation; the continent receives an average equivalent to about 150 mm (6 in) of water per year, mostly in the form of snow. The interior is dryer and receives less than 50 mm (2 in) per year, whereas the coastal regions typically receive more than 200 mm (8 in). In a few blue-ice areas, the wind and sublimation remove more snow than is accumulated by precipitation. In the dry valleys, the same effect occurs over a rock base, leading to a barren and desiccated landscape. Antarctica is colder than the Arctic region, as much of Antarctica is over 3,000 m (9,800 ft) above sea level, where air temperatures are colder. The relative warmth of the Arctic Ocean is transferred through the Arctic sea ice and moderates temperatures in the Arctic region.

Regional differences

East Antarctica is colder than its western counterpart because of its higher elevation. Weather fronts rarely penetrate far into the continent, leaving the centre cold and dry, with moderate wind speeds. Heavy snowfalls are common on the coastal portion of Antarctica, where snowfalls of up to 1.22 m (48 in) in 48 hours have been recorded. At the continent's edge, strong katabatic winds off of the polar plateau often blow at storm force. During the summer, more solar radiation reaches the surface at the South Pole than at the equator because of the 24 hours of sunlight received there each day.

Climate change

Antarctica's average ice mass loss since 2002 has been on the order of 100 billion metric tons per year. (Time between NASA's GRACE and GRACE Follow-On satellite projects caused gap in data.)
This section is an excerpt from Climate change in Antarctica.
Antarctic surface ice layer temperature trends between 1981 and 2007, based on thermal infrared observations made by a series of NOAA satellite sensors.

Climate change caused by greenhouse gas emissions from human activities occurs everywhere on Earth, and while Antarctica is less vulnerable to it than any other continent, climate change in Antarctica has been observed. Since 1959, there has been an average temperature increase of >0.05 °C/decade since 1957 across the continent, although it had been uneven. West Antarctica warmed by over 0.1 °C/decade from the 1950s to the 2000s, and the exposed Antarctic Peninsula has warmed by 3 °C (5.4 °F) since the mid-20th century. The colder, stabler East Antarctica had been experiencing cooling until the 2000s. Around Antarctica, the Southern Ocean has absorbed more oceanic heat than any other ocean, and has seen strong warming at depths below 2,000 m (6,600 ft). Around the West Antarctic, the ocean has warmed by 1 °C (1.8 °F) since 1955.

The warming of the Southern Ocean around Antarctica has caused the weakening or collapse of ice shelves, which float just offshore of glaciers and stabilize them. Many coastal glaciers have been losing mass and retreating, causing net-annual ice loss across Antarctica, although the East Antarctic ice sheet continues to gain ice inland. By 2100, net ice loss from Antarctica is expected to add about 11 cm (5 in) to global sea level rise. Marine ice sheet instability may cause West Antarctica to contribute tens of centimeters more if it is triggered before 2100. With higher warming, instability would be much more likely, and could double global, 21st-century sea-level rise.

The fresh, 1100–1500 billion tons (GT) per year of meltwater from the ice dilutes the saline Antarctic bottom water, weakening the lower cell of the Southern Ocean overturning circulation (SOOC). According to some research, a full collapse of the SOOC may occur a between 1.7 °C (3.1 °F) and 3 °C (5.4 °F) of global warming, although the full effects are expected to occur over multiple centuries; these include less precipitation in the Southern Hemisphere but more in the Northern Hemisphere, an eventual decline of fisheries in the Southern Ocean and a potential collapse of certain marine ecosystems. While many Antarctic species remain undiscovered, there are documented increases in Antarctic flora, and large fauna such as penguins are already having difficulty retaining suitable habitat. On ice-free land, permafrost thaws release greenhouse gases and formerly frozen pollution.

The West Antarctic ice sheet is likely to completely melt unless temperatures are reduced by 2 °C (3.6 °F) below 2020 levels. The loss of this ice sheet would take between 2,000 and 13,000 years, although several centuries of high greenhouse emissions could shorten this time to 500 years. A sea-level rise of 3.3 m (10 ft 10 in) would occur if the ice sheet collapses, leaving ice caps on the mountains, and 4.3 m (14 ft 1 in) if those ice caps also melt. Isostatic rebound may contribute an additional 1 m (3 ft 3 in) to global sea levels over another 1,000 years. The far-stabler East Antarctic ice sheet may only cause a sea-level rise of 0.5 m (1 ft 8 in) – 0.9 m (2 ft 11 in) from the current level of warming, a small fraction of the 53.3 m (175 ft) contained in the full ice sheet. With global warming of around 3 °C (5.4 °F), vulnerable areas like Wilkes Basin and Aurora Basin may collapse over around 2,000 years, potentially adding up to 6.4 m (21 ft 0 in) to sea levels. The complete melting and disappearance of the East Antarctic ice sheet would require at least 10,000 years and would only occur if global warming reaches 5 °C (9.0 °F) to 10 °C (18 °F).

Ozone depletion

Main article: Ozone hole
Image of the ozone hole spanning almost all of Antarctica
Image of the largest hole in the ozone layer recorded, in September 2006

Scientists have studied the ozone layer in the atmosphere above Antarctica since the 1970s. In 1985, British scientists, working on data they had gathered at Halley Research Station on the Brunt Ice Shelf, discovered a large area of low ozone concentration over Antarctica. The 'ozone hole' covers almost the whole continent and was at its largest in September 2006; the longest-lasting event occurred in 2020. The depletion is caused by the emission of chlorofluorocarbons and halons into the atmosphere, which causes ozone to break down into other gases. The extreme cold conditions of Antarctica allow polar stratospheric clouds to form. The clouds act as catalysts for chemical reactions, which eventually lead to the destruction of ozone. The 1987 Montreal Protocol has restricted the emissions of ozone-depleting substances. The ozone hole above Antarctica is predicted to slowly disappear; by the 2060s, levels of ozone are expected to have returned to values last recorded in the 1980s.

The ozone depletion can cause a cooling of around 6 °C (11 °F) in the stratosphere. The cooling strengthens the polar vortex and so prevents the outflow of the cold air near the South Pole, which in turn cools the continental mass of the East Antarctic ice sheet. The peripheral areas of Antarctica, especially the Antarctic Peninsula, are then subjected to higher temperatures, which accelerate the melting of the ice. Models suggest that ozone depletion and the enhanced polar vortex effect may also account for the period of increasing sea ice extent, lasting from when observation started in the late 1970s until 2014. Since then, the coverage of Antarctic sea ice has decreased rapidly.

Biodiversity

See also: Antarctic realm, Antarctic microorganism, and Wildlife of Antarctica

Most species in Antarctica seem to be the descendants of species that lived there millions of years ago. As such, they must have survived multiple glacial cycles. The species survived the periods of extremely cold climate in isolated warmer areas, such as those with geothermal heat or areas that remained ice-free throughout the colder climate.

Animals

penguins with young
Emperor penguins with juveniles

Invertebrate life of Antarctica includes species of microscopic mites such as Alaskozetes antarcticus, lice, nematodes, tardigrades, rotifers, krill and springtails. The few terrestrial invertebrates are limited to the sub-Antarctic islands. The flightless midge Belgica antarctica, the largest purely terrestrial animal in Antarctica, reaches 6 mm (1⁄4 in) in size.

Antarctic krill, which congregates in large schools, is the keystone species of the ecosystem of the Southern Ocean, being an important food organism for whales, seals, leopard seals, fur seals, squid, icefish, and many bird species, such as penguins and albatrosses. Some species of marine animals exist and rely, directly or indirectly, on phytoplankton. Antarctic sea life includes penguins, blue whales, orcas, colossal squids and fur seals. The Antarctic fur seal was very heavily hunted in the 18th and 19th centuries for its pelt by seal hunters from the United States and the United Kingdom. Leopard seals are apex predators in the Antarctic ecosystem and migrate across the Southern Ocean in search of food.

There are approximately 40 bird species that breed on or close to Antarctica, including species of petrels, penguins, cormorants, and gulls. Various other bird species visit the ocean around Antarctica, including some that normally reside in the Arctic. The emperor penguin is the only penguin that breeds during the winter in Antarctica; it and the Adélie penguin breed farther south than any other penguin.

A Census of Marine Life by some 500 researchers during the International Polar Year was released in 2010. The research found that more than 235 marine organisms live in both polar regions, having bridged the gap of 12,000 km (7,456 mi). Large animals such as some cetaceans and birds make the round trip annually. Smaller forms of life, such as sea cucumbers and free-swimming snails, are also found in both polar oceans. Factors that may aid in their distribution include temperature differences between the deep ocean at the poles and the equator of no more than 5 °C (9 °F) and the major current systems or marine conveyor belts which are able to transport eggs and larva.

Fungi

lichen photographed in Antarctica
An orange lichen (perhaps Caloplaca) growing on the Yalour Islands, Wilhelm Archipelago

About 1,150 species of fungi have been recorded in the Antarctic region, of which about 750 are non-lichen-forming. Some of the species, having evolved under extreme conditions, have colonised structural cavities within porous rocks and have contributed to shaping the rock formations of the McMurdo Dry Valleys and surrounding mountain ridges.

The simplified morphology of such fungi, along with their similar biological structures, metabolism systems capable of remaining active at very low temperatures, and reduced life cycles, make them well suited to such environments. Their thick-walled and strongly melanised cells make them resistant to UV radiation. An Antarctic endemic species, the crust-like lichen Buellia frigida, has been used as a model organism in astrobiology research.

The same features can be observed in algae and cyanobacteria, suggesting that they are adaptations to the conditions prevailing in Antarctica. This has led to speculation that life on Mars might have been similar to Antarctic fungi, such as Cryomyces antarcticus and Cryomyces minteri. Some of the species of fungi, which are apparently endemic to Antarctica, live in bird dung, and have evolved so they can grow inside extremely cold dung, but can also pass through the intestines of warm-blooded animals.

Plants

Main article: Flora of Antarctica Further information: Flora Antarctica
Deschampsia antarctica at Collins Glacier, Antarctica. This species is one of only two flowering plants native to Antarctica, the other one being Antarctic pearlwort (Colobanthus quitensis).

Throughout its history, Antarctica has seen a wide variety of plant life. In the Cretaceous, it was dominated by a fern-conifer ecosystem, which changed into a temperate rainforest by the end of that period. During the colder Neogene (17–2.5 Ma), a tundra ecosystem replaced the rainforests. The climate of present-day Antarctica does not allow extensive vegetation to form. A combination of freezing temperatures, poor soil quality, and a lack of moisture and sunlight inhibit plant growth, causing low species diversity and limited distribution. The flora largely consists of bryophytes (25 species of liverworts and 100 species of mosses). There are three species of flowering plants, all of which are found in the Antarctic Peninsula: Deschampsia antarctica (Antarctic hair grass), Colobanthus quitensis (Antarctic pearlwort) and the non-native Poa annua (annual bluegrass).

Other organisms

Of the 700 species of algae in Antarctica, around half are marine phytoplankton. Multicoloured snow algae are especially abundant in the coastal regions during the summer. Even sea ice can harbour unique ecological communities, as it expels all salt from the water when it freezes, which accumulates into pockets of brine that also harbour dormant microorganisms. When the ice begins to melt, brine pockets expand and can combine to form brine channels, and the algae inside the pockets can reawaken and thrive until the next freeze. Bacteria have also been found as deep as 800 m (0.50 mi) under the ice. It is thought to be likely that there exists a native bacterial community within the subterranean water body of Lake Vostok. The existence of life there is thought to strengthen the argument for the possibility of life on Jupiter's moon Europa, which may have water beneath its water-ice crust. There exists a community of extremophile bacteria in the highly alkaline waters of Lake Untersee. The prevalence of highly resilient creatures in such inhospitable areas could further bolster the argument for extraterrestrial life in cold, methane-rich environments.

Conservation and environmental protection

photograph of refuse on an island in Antarctica
Refuse littering the shoreline at Bellingshausen Station on King George Island, photographed in 1992

The first international agreement to protect Antarctica's biodiversity was adopted in 1964. The overfishing of krill (an animal that plays a large role in the Antarctic ecosystem) led officials to enact regulations on fishing. The Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources, an international treaty that came into force in 1980, regulates fisheries, aiming to preserve ecological relationships. Despite these regulations, illegal fishing—particularly of the highly prized Patagonian toothfish which is marketed as Chilean sea bass in the U.S.—remains a problem.

In analogy to the 1980 treaty on sustainable fishing, countries led by New Zealand and the United States negotiated a treaty on mining. This Convention on the Regulation of Antarctic Mineral Resource Activities was adopted in 1988. After a strong campaign from environmental organisations, first Australia and then France decided not to ratify the treaty. Instead, countries adopted the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty (the Madrid Protocol), which entered into force in 1998. The Madrid Protocol bans all mining, designating the continent as a "natural reserve devoted to peace and science".

photograph of a whale in the Southern Ocean
A whale in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary

The pressure group Greenpeace established a base on Ross Island from 1987 to 1992 as part of its attempt to establish the continent as a World Park. The Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary was established in 1994 by the International Whaling Commission. It covers 50 million km (19 million sq mi) and completely surrounds the Antarctic continent. All commercial whaling is banned in the zone, though Japan has continued to hunt whales in the area, ostensibly for research purposes.

Despite these protections, the biodiversity in Antarctica is still at risk from human activities. Specially protected areas cover less than 2% of the area and provide better protection for animals with popular appeal than for less visible animals. There are more terrestrial protected areas than marine protected areas. Ecosystems are impacted by local and global threats, notably pollution, the invasion of non-native species, and the various effects of climate change.

History of exploration

Main articles: History of Antarctica, Colonization of Antarctica, and Farthest south See also: List of Antarctic expeditions, Women in Antarctica, and List of polar explorers
Positions of Farthest South records: pre-1521 possibly by Yaghan people (B), 1521 by Ferdinand Magellan (A), 18th century by James Cook (D/E), early 19th century by James Weddell (F) and James Clark Ross (G) and around the turn to the 20th century from 1900 by Carsten Borchgrevink (H), after landing and setting up base for the first time on Antarctica, to Roald Amundsen reaching the South Pole in 1911 (K).

Early world maps, like the 1513 Piri Reis map, feature the hypothetical continent Terra Australis. Much larger than and unrelated to Antarctica, Terra Australis was a landmass that classical scholars presumed necessary to balance the known lands in the northern hemisphere.

Captain James Cook's ships, HMS Resolution and Adventure, crossed the Antarctic Circle on 17 January 1773, in December 1773, and again in January 1774. Cook came within about 120 km (75 mi) of the Antarctic coast before retreating in the face of field ice in January 1773. In 1775, he called the existence of a polar continent "probable", and in another copy of his journal he wrote: " firmly believe it and it's more than probable that we have seen a part of it".

19th century

The first base on Antarctica of Carstens Borchgrevink's Southern Cross Expetition (1899). The hut (HSM 22) still stands and is located on Cape Adare, the cape where in 1895 Borchgrevnik participated in the first documented landing on Antarctica.

Sealers were among the earliest to go closer to the Antarctic landmass, perhaps in the earlier part of the 19th century. The oldest known human remains in the Antarctic region was a skull, dated from 1819 to 1825, that belonged to a young woman on Yamana Beach at the South Shetland Islands. The woman, who was likely to have been part of a sealing expedition, was found in 1985.

The first person to see Antarctica or its ice shelf was long thought to have been the British sailor Edward Bransfield, a captain in the Royal Navy, who discovered the tip of the Antarctic peninsula on 30 January 1820. However, a captain in the Imperial Russian Navy, Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen, recorded seeing an ice shelf on 27 January. The American sealer Nathaniel Palmer, whose sealing ship was in the region at this time, may also have been the first to sight the Antarctic Peninsula.

The First Russian Antarctic Expedition, led by Bellingshausen and Mikhail Lazarev on the 985-ton sloop-of-war Vostok and the 530-ton support vessel Mirny, reached a point within 32 km (20 mi) of Queen Maud Land and recorded sighting an ice shelf at 69°21′28″S 2°14′50″W / 69.35778°S 2.24722°W / -69.35778; -2.24722, on 27 January 1820. The sighting happened three days before Bransfield sighted the land of the Trinity Peninsula of Antarctica, as opposed to the ice of an ice shelf, and 10 months before Palmer did so in November 1820. The first documented landing on Antarctica was by the English-born American sealer John Davis, apparently at Hughes Bay on 7 February 1821, although some historians dispute this claim, as there is no evidence Davis landed on the Antarctic continent rather than an offshore island.

On 22 January 1840, two days after the discovery of the coast west of the Balleny Islands, some members of the crew of the 1837–1840 expedition of the French explorer Jules Dumont d'Urville disembarked on the Dumoulin Islands, off the coast of Adélie Land, where they took some mineral, algae, and animal samples, erected the French flag, and claimed French sovereignty over the territory. The American captain Charles Wilkes led an expedition in 1838–1839 and was the first to claim he had discovered the continent. The British naval officer James Clark Ross failed to realise that what he referred to as "the various patches of land recently discovered by the American, French and English navigators on the verge of the Antarctic Circle" were connected to form a single continent. The American explorer Mercator Cooper landed on East Antarctica on 26 January 1853.

The first confirmed landing on the continental mass of Antarctica occurred in 1895 when the Norwegian-Swedish whaling ship Antarctic reached Cape Adare.

20th century

Discovery Hut (1902) at Hut Point Peninsula of Ross Island, Antarctica, one of the earliest repeatedly temporarily used dwellings on Antarctica. In the background McMurdo Station, the largest base on Antarctica today, with cargo operations of the supply ship MV American Tern of Operation Deep Freeze 2007.

During the Nimrod Expedition led by the British explorer Ernest Shackleton in 1907, parties led by Edgeworth David became the first to climb Mount Erebus and to reach the south magnetic pole. Douglas Mawson, who assumed the leadership of the Magnetic Pole party on their perilous return, retired in 1931. Between December 1908 and February 1909: Shackleton and three members of his expedition became the first humans to traverse the Ross Ice Shelf, the first to cross the Transantarctic Mountains (via the Beardmore Glacier), and the first to set foot on the south Polar Plateau. On 14 December 1911, an expedition led by Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen from the ship Fram became the first to reach the geographic South Pole, using a route from the Bay of Whales and up the Axel Heiberg Glacier. One month later, the doomed Terra Nova Expedition reached the pole.

The American explorer Richard E. Byrd led four expeditions to Antarctica during the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s, using the first mechanised tractors. His expeditions conducted extensive geographical and scientific research, and he is credited with surveying a larger region of the continent than any other explorer. In 1937, Ingrid Christensen became the first woman to step onto the Antarctic mainland. Caroline Mikkelsen had landed on an island of Antarctica, earlier in 1935.

The South Pole was next reached on 31 October 1956, when a U.S. Navy group led by Rear Admiral George J. Dufek successfully landed an aircraft there. Six women were flown to the South Pole as a publicity stunt in 1969. In the summer of 1996–1997, Norwegian explorer Børge Ousland became the first person to cross Antarctica alone from coast to coast, helped by a kite on parts of the journey. Ousland holds the record for the fastest unsupported journey to the South Pole, taking 34 days.

Demographics

Main articles: Demographics of Antarctica and Religion in Antarctica

The first semi-permanent inhabitants of regions near Antarctica (areas situated south of the Antarctic Convergence) were British and American sealers who used to spend a year or more on South Georgia, from 1786 onward. During the whaling era, which lasted until 1966, the population of the island varied from over 1,000 in the summer (over 2,000 in some years) to some 200 in the winter. Most of the whalers were Norwegian, with an increasing proportion from Britain.

photograph of the South Pole research station
The "ceremonial" South Pole, at Amundsen–Scott Station

Antarctica's population consists mostly of the staff of research stations in Antarctica (which are continuously maintained despite the population decline in the winter), although there are 2 all-civilian bases in Antarctica: the Esperanza Base and the Villa Las Estrellas base. The number of people conducting and supporting scientific research and other work on the continent and its nearby islands varies from about 1,200 in winter to about 4,800 in the summer, with an additional 136 people in the winter to 266 people in the summer from the 2 civilian bases (as of 2017). Some of the research stations are staffed year-round, the winter-over personnel typically arriving from their home countries for a one-year assignment. The Russian Orthodox Holy Trinity Church at the Bellingshausen Station on King George Island opened in 2004; it is staffed year-round by one or two priests, who are similarly rotated every year.

The first child born in the southern polar region was a Norwegian girl, Solveig Gunbjørg Jacobsen, born in Grytviken on 8 October 1913. Emilio Marcos Palma was the first person born south of the 60th parallel south and the first to be born on the Antarctic mainland at the Esperanza Base of the Argentine Army.

The Antarctic Treaty prohibits any military activity in Antarctica, including the establishment of military bases and fortifications, military manoeuvres, and weapons testing. Military personnel or equipment are permitted only for scientific research or other peaceful purposes. Operation 90 by the Argentine military in 1965 was conducted to strengthen Argentina's claim in Antarctica.

Antarctic English, a distinct variety of the English language, has been found to be spoken by people living on Antarctica and the subantarctic islands.

Politics

photograph of the US signing the Antarctic Treaty
The U.S. delegate Herman Phleger signs the Antarctic Treaty in December 1959.

Antarctica's status is regulated by the 1959 Antarctic Treaty and other related agreements, collectively called the Antarctic Treaty System. Antarctica is defined as all land and ice shelves south of 60° S for the purposes of the Treaty System. The treaty was signed by twelve countries, including the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, Argentina, Chile, Australia, and the United States. Since 1959, a further 42 countries have acceded to the treaty. Countries can participate in decision-making if they can demonstrate that they do significant research on Antarctica; as of 2022, 29 countries have this 'consultative status'. Decisions are based on consensus, instead of a vote. The treaty set aside Antarctica as a scientific preserve and established freedom of scientific investigation and environmental protection.

Territorial claims

Main article: Territorial claims in Antarctica
Map of the Spanish Governorate of Terra Australis (1539–1555), the first territorial claim over the lands near the South Pole; later it was incorporated into the Governorate of Chile.

In 1539, the King of Spain, Charles V, created the Governorate of Terra Australis, which encompassed lands south of the Strait of Magellan and thus theoretically Antarctica, the existence of which was only hypothesized at the time, granting this Governorate to Pedro Sancho de la Hoz, who in 1540 transferred the title to the conquistador Pedro de Valdivia. Spain claimed all the territories to the south of the Strait of Magellan until the South Pole, with eastern and western borders to these claims specified in the Treaty of Tordesillas and Zaragoza respectively. In 1555 the claim was incorporated to Chile.

In the present, sovereignty over regions of Antarctica is claimed by seven countries. While a few of these countries have mutually recognised each other's claims, the validity of the claims is not recognised universally. New claims on Antarctica have been suspended since 1959, although in 2015, Norway formally defined Queen Maud Land as including the unclaimed area between it and the South Pole.

The Argentine, British, and Chilean claims overlap and have caused friction. In 2012, after the British Foreign & Commonwealth Office designated a previously unnamed area Queen Elizabeth Land in tribute to Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee, the Argentine government protested against the claim. The UK passed some of the areas it claimed to Australia and New Zealand after they achieved independence. The claims by Britain, Australia, New Zealand, France, and Norway do not overlap and are recognised by each other. Other member nations of the Antarctic Treaty do not recognise any claim, yet have shown some form of territorial interest in the past.

  •  Brazil has a designated "zone of interest" that is not an actual claim.
  •  Peru formally reserved its right to make a claim.
  •  Russia inherited the Soviet Union's right to claim territory under the original Antarctic Treaty.
  •  South Africa formally reserved its right to make a claim.
  •  The United States reserved its right to make a claim in the original Antarctic Treaty.
Date Claimant Territory Claim limits Map
1840  France  Adélie Land Originally undefined; later specified to be 142°2′E to 136°11′E
1908 United Kingdom United Kingdom  British Antarctic Territory 80°0′W to 20°0′W
  • 80°0′W to 74°0′W claimed by Chile (1940)
  • 74°0′W to 53°0′W claimed by Chile (1940) and Argentina (1943)
  • 53°0′W to 25°0′W claimed by Argentina (1943)
1923 New Zealand New Zealand Ross Dependency 160°0′E to 150°0′W
1931  Norway  Peter I Island 68°50′S 90°35′W / 68.833°S 90.583°W / -68.833; -90.583 (Peter I Island)
1933  Australia  Australian Antarctic Territory 44°38′E to 136°11′E, and 142°2′E to 160°00′E
1939  Norway  Queen Maud Land 20°00′W to 44°38′E
1940  Chile  Chilean Antarctic Territory 90°0′W to 53°0′W
  • 80°00′W to 74°00′W claimed by the United Kingdom (1908)
  • 74°00′W to 53°00′W claimed by the United Kingdom (1908) and Argentina (1943)
1943  Argentina  Argentine Antarctica 74°0′W to 25°0′W
  • 74°0′W to 53°0′W claimed by the United Kingdom (1908) and Chile (1940)
  • 53°0′W to 25°0′W claimed by the United Kingdom (1908)
(Unclaimed territory) Marie Byrd Land 150°0′W to 90°0′W
(except Peter I Island)

Economy and tourism

Main article: Tourism in Antarctica See also: Telecommunications in Antarctica, Transport in Antarctica, and Crime in Antarctica
Photograph of a cruise ship off the Antarctic coast
The cruise ship Silver Cloud in Wilhelmina Bay

Deposits of coal, hydrocarbons, iron ore, platinum, copper, chromium, nickel, gold, and other minerals have been found in Antarctica, but not in large enough quantities to extract. The Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty, which came into effect in 1998 and is due to be reviewed in 2048, restricts the exploitation of Antarctic resources, including minerals.

Tourists have been visiting Antarctica since 1957. Tourism is subject to the provisions of the Antarctic Treaty and Environmental Protocol; the self-regulatory body for the industry is the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators. Tourists arrive by small or medium ship at specific scenic locations with accessible concentrations of iconic wildlife. Over 74,000 tourists visited the region during the 2019–2020 season, of which 18,500 travelled on cruise ships but did not leave them to explore on land. The numbers of tourists fell rapidly after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Some nature conservation groups have expressed concern over the potential adverse effects caused by the influx of visitors and have called for limits on the size of visiting cruise ships and a tourism quota. The primary response by Antarctic Treaty parties has been to develop guidelines that set landing limits and closed or restricted zones on the more frequently visited sites.

Tourism in Antarctica is, in part, ecologically focused with expeditions being offered for bird watching tours due to the high numbers of Adélie, King, and Gentoo penguins – among other species. One site in particular – McDonald Beach – is known to be a high-traffic area for tourists watching the Adélie penguins who number more than 40,000.

Overland sightseeing flights operated out of Australia and New Zealand until the Mount Erebus disaster in 1979, when an Air New Zealand plane crashed into Mount Erebus, killing all of the 257 people on board. Qantas resumed commercial overflights to Antarctica from Australia in the mid-1990s. There are many airports in Antarctica.

Research

Main article: Research stations in Antarctica
aerial photograph of McMurdo station
An aerial view of McMurdo Station, the largest research station in Antarctica

In 2017, there were more than 4,400 scientists undertaking research in Antarctica, a number that fell to just over 1,100 in the winter. There are over 70 permanent and seasonal research stations on the continent; the largest, United States' McMurdo Station, is capable of housing more than 1,000 people. The British Antarctic Survey has five major research stations on Antarctica, one of which is completely portable. The Belgian Princess Elisabeth station is one of the most modern stations and the first to be carbon-neutral. Argentina, Australia, Chile, and Russia also have a large scientific presence on Antarctica.

Geologists primarily study plate tectonics, meteorites, and the breakup of Gondwana. Glaciologists study the history and dynamics of floating ice, seasonal snow, glaciers, and ice sheets. Biologists, in addition to researching wildlife, are interested in how low temperatures and the presence of humans affect adaptation and survival strategies in organisms. Biomedical scientists have made discoveries concerning the spreading of viruses and the body's response to extreme seasonal temperatures.

Photograph of a meteorite found in Antarctica
An Antarctic meteorite, Allan Hills 84001 on display at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History

The high elevation of the interior, the low temperatures, and the length of polar nights during the winter months all allow for better astronomical observations at Antarctica than anywhere else on Earth.

The view of space from Earth is improved by a thinner atmosphere at higher elevations and a lack of water vapour in the atmosphere caused by freezing temperatures. Astrophysicists at the Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station study cosmic microwave background radiation and neutrinos from space.

The largest neutrino detector in the world, the IceCube Neutrino Observatory, is at the Amundsen-Scott Station. It consists of around 5,500 digital optical modules, some of which reach a depth of 2,450 m (8,040 ft), that are held in 1 km (0.24 cu mi) of ice. Scientists also observed higher radiation dose rates around the coast of Antarctica compared with the global average: this is attributed to cosmic rays going through the thinner atmosphere compared to equatorial latitudes.

Antarctica provides a unique environment for the study of meteorites: the dry polar desert preserves them well, and meteorites older than a million years have been found. They are relatively easy to find, as the dark stone meteorites stand out in a landscape of ice and snow, and the flow of ice accumulates them in certain areas.

The Adelie Land meteorite, discovered in 1912, was the first to be found. Meteorites contain clues about the composition of the Solar System and its early development. Most meteorites come from asteroids, but a few meteorites found in Antarctica came from the Moon and Mars.

Major scientific organizations in Antarctica have released strategy and action plans focused on advancing national interests and objectives in Antarctica, supporting cutting-edge research to understand the interactions between the Antarctic region and climate systems. The British Antarctic Survey (BAS) released a 10-year (2023–2033) strategy report to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to focus on creating sustainable living on Earth. Environmental sustainability is named as one of the top focus areas by the BAS strategy, highlighting the main challenge and priority to embed environmental sustainability into everything.

In 2022, the Australian Antarctic Program (AAP) released a new Strategy and 20-year Action Plan (2022–2036) to modernize its Antarctic program. The global climate system was highlighted as one of the main priorities that will be supported and studied through the AAP Strategy Plan. It emphasizes the importance of understanding the vital role of Antarctica and the Southern Ocean in climate and weather to improve current knowledge and inform management responses.

In 2021, the United States Antarctic Program (USAP) released a Midterm Assessment on the 2015 Strategic Vision for Antarctic and Southern Ocean Research, stressing the prominent role of the Southern Ocean in the global carbon cycle and sea level rise. The USAP outlines the Changing Antarctic Ice Sheets Initiative as a top priority to enhance understanding of why ice sheets are changing now, and how they will change in the future.

The Antarctic ice sheet's changing height

Antarctic ice sheets are a central focus of contemporary climate research due to urgent questions about their stability and reaction to global warming. Satellite technology enables researchers to study the ice sheets both through on-site fieldwork and remote sensing, facilitating detailed analyses of ice dynamics to predict future changes in a warming world.

The INStabilities & Thresholds in ANTarctica (INSTANT) Scientific Research Programme proposes three research themes, investigating the complex interactions between the atmosphere, ocean, and solid Earth in Antarctica. Its aims include improving the understanding and predictions of these processes to aid decision makers in risk assessment, management, and mitigation related to Antarctic climate change.

The Australian-led ICECAP project utilized advanced aerogeophysical techniques to map deep subglacial basins and channels that connect the ice sheet to the ocean. This mapping improves predictions of ice sheet stability, the impacts of climate change on the ice sheets, and their potential contributions to global sea level rise.

Culture

Attendees at the 2013 Icestock
Attendees at the 2013 Icestock

Music and film

The southernmost music festival in the world, Icestock, has been held at McMurdo Station since 1989. The organizers, performers, and attendees of Icestock are all personnel working at McMurdo or nearby Scott Base. The Antarctic Film Festival is held annually between bases, with 48 stations registered to participate as of 2022. The festival is designed for short films of 5 minutes or less.

In 2011, Australian classical harpist Alice Giles became the first professional musician to perform in Antarctica. The first full-length fictional film to be shot in Antarctica was South of Sanity, a 2012 low budget British horror film. An upcoming film directed by Nick Cassavetes and starring Anthony Hopkins, Bruno Penguin and the Staten Island Princess, will be the first major Hollywood production to shoot in Antarctica.

Sport

Sporting events held on Antarctica include the Antarctic Ice Marathon & 100k ultra race, Antarctica Marathon and Antarctica Cup Yacht Race. Association football has been played since the early twentieth century, with teams representing bases or visiting ships.

Holidays

There are two principal holidays celebrated across Antarctica: Midwinter Day on the day of the southern winter solstice (June 20 or 21) and Antarctica Day on December 1, which commemorates the signing of the Antarctic Treaty in 1959.

See also

Notes

  1. The word was originally pronounced with the first c silent in English, but the spelling pronunciation has become common and is often considered more correct. However, the pronunciation with a silent c, and even with the first t silent as well, is widespread and typical of many similar English words. The c had ceased to be pronounced in Medieval Latin and was dropped from the spelling in Old French, but it was added back for etymological reasons in English in the 17th century and thereafter began to be pronounced, but (as with other spelling pronunciations) at first only by less educated people. For those who pronounce the first t, there is also variation between the pronunciations Ant-ar(c)tica and An-tar(c)tica.
  2. Before the Southern Ocean was recognised as a separate ocean, it was considered to be surrounded by the southern Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Oceans.
  3. Geographical features, such as ice caps, are shown as they are today for identification purposes, not as how they appeared at these times.
  4. The feature discovered by the Russians was the Fimbul ice shelf.
  5. Ross passed through what is now known as the Ross Sea and discovered Ross Island (both of which were named after him) in 1841. He sailed along a huge wall of ice that was later named the Ross Ice Shelf. Mount Erebus and Mount Terror are named after two ships from his expedition: HMS Erebus and Terror.
  6. The women were Pam Young, Jean Pearson, Lois Jones, Eileen McSaveney, Kay Lindsay and Terry Tickhill.
  7. The first settlements included Grytviken, Leith Harbour, King Edward Point, Stromness, Husvik, Prince Olav Harbour, Ocean Harbour and Godthul. Managers and other senior officers of the whaling stations often lived together with their families. Among them was the founder of Grytviken, Captain Carl Anton Larsen, a prominent Norwegian whaler and explorer who, along with his family, adopted British citizenship in 1910.
  8. Antarctician meteorites, particularly ALH84001 discovered by ANSMET, were at the centre of the controversy about possible evidence of life on Mars. Because meteorites in space absorb and record cosmic radiation, the time elapsed since the meteorite hit the Earth can be calculated.

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Bibliography

Main article: Bibliography of Antarctica

Further reading

External links

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