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Page 2 Antarctica is located mostly in the Antarctic Circle which is defined as the area south of 66’N degrees 33'S The nearest neighbor is 1000 km away, the island of Tierra del Fuego in South America's most southern tip. The sun shines half of the year, and stays under the horizon

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Page 9 Antarctica is bordered by the waters often known as the Antarctic Ocean(or Southern Ocean). Here the southern parts of the Atlantic, Pacific, and the Indian oceans meet. Antarctica means “opposite to the Arctic,” Earth’s northernmost region.

Page 10 Brunt Ice Shelf, Antarctica Antarctica's Brunt Ice Shelf floats atop the Weddell Sea. The ice shelves of Antarctica are a major source of icebergs

Page 11 Robert Hernandez/Photo Researchers, Inc. Microsoft ® Encarta ® © Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Antarctic Iceberg Icebergs are free-floating chunks of glaciers, particularly common in the polar regions. Although they are often spectacular, these ice formations pose a twofold problem for navigators: Icebergs may be 90 percent bigger than they appear from the surface, and it is impossible to map their presence because they are constantly moving.

Page 12 Red Snow Algae on Snowfields on the Antarctic Peninsula Algae, the most primitive plants, are adapted for a wide range of environmental conditions. The red cast of the snow in certain parts of the Antarctic Peninsula is due to the presence of a species of red algae that lives out its entire life on snowfields and glaciers.

Page 13 Antarctica, 2 ND SMALLEST of Earth’s seven continents. Antarctica is simply the most barren place on the planet. Located at the farthest southern point on the planet, Antarctica is the only landmass not claimed by any country.

Page 14 Antarctica is the icy continent at the South Pole. It is covered by permafrost (permanently frozen ground), is surrounded by water, and is about 1 1/2 times larger than the United States. The world's largest desert is on Antarctica. 98 percent of the land is covered with a continental ice sheet; the remaining 2 percent of land is barren rock. Antarctica has about 87% of the world's ice. Geography

Page 15 Climate The South Pole is the coldest, windiest, and driest place on Earth. The coldest temperature ever recorded on Earth was at the South Pole; it reached °F (-88.0°C)!

Page 16 People There are no permanent human residents (because of the extreme weather, which includes freezing temperatures, strong winds, and blizzards). There are about 4,000 seasonal visitors to Antarctica.

Page 17 Location Antarctica hasn't always been located at the South Pole. It has drifted, like the other continents, and has ranged from the equator (during the Cambrian period, about 500 million years ago) to the South Pole. During the time of the dinosaurs (the Mesozoic Era, about 65 million to 248 million years ago), Antarctica was more temperate and housed dinosaurs and many other life forms. Now, there is very little indigenous life

Page 18 View from 9100 km above 48°20'S 151°42'E

Page 19 Antarctica is one and a half times the size of the United States.

Page 20 The temperature in Antarctica almost always remains below freezing.

Page 21 No trees grow on Antarctica.

Page 22 Antarctica holds roughly one third of all the fresh water on Earth.

Page 23 The sea around Antarctica, is full of living creatures. Krill, a microscopic shrimp-like creature Earless seals do not have flaps over their ears. Their heads look smooth. The hind, or back, flippers of earless seals face behind them so that they have an awkward movement on land.

Page 24 Eared seals and sea lions have external (outside) ear flaps, which is how they get their name. Eared seals and sea lions can rotate their hind feet forward and can therefore propel themselves forward with considerable speed. Unlike the earless seals, they are quite agile on land. The front flippers are used on land to prop themselves up, and in the water to swim with

Page 25 Antarctic fur seals breed mainly on sub-Antarctic islands

Page 26 Elephant seals breed in groups called harems. The strongest males each control a harem of up to 50 females. Once a harem grows to more than this, the dominant male will allow some less strong males to live with the harem.

Page 27 ANTARCTICA TODAY Ozone Depletion & the Green-House Effect The ozone layer is a layer of gas in the upper atmosphere of the earth. It blocks a lot of ultraviolet light that is harmful to the skin and could cause skin cancer. However the ozone layer over Antarctica is being destroyed. Scientists blame this destruction on Chlorofluorocarbons, or CFC's.