(higher resolution copy (http://www.photolib.noaa.gov/corps/images/big/corp2359.jpg))
Geographic coordinates: 90 00 S, 0 00 E
Map references: Antarctic Region
Area:
total:
14 million sq km
land:
14 million sq km (280,000 sq km ice-free, 13.72 million sq km ice-covered) (est.)
note:
fifth-largest continent, following Asia, Africa, North America, and South America, but larger than Australia and the subcontinent of Europe
Land boundaries:
0 km
note:
see entry on Transnational issues of Antarctica[?]
Coastline: 17,968 km
Maritime claims: none, but see the Disputes - international entry
Climate: severe low temperatures vary with latitude, elevation, and distance from the ocean; East Antarctica is colder than West Antarctica because of its higher elevation; Antarctic Peninsula has the most moderate climate; higher temperatures occur in January along the coast and average slightly below freezing
Terrain: about 98% thick continental ice sheet and 2% barren rock, with average elevations between 2,000 and 4,000 meters; mountain ranges up to 5,140 meters; ice-free coastal areas include parts of southern Victoria Land[?], Wilkes Land[?], the Antarctic Peninsula[?] area, and parts of Ross Island on McMurdo Sound[?]; glaciers form ice shelves along about half of the coastline, and floating ice shelves constitute 11% of the area of the continent
Elevation extremes:
lowest point:
Southern Ocean 0 m
highest point:
Vinson Massif 5,140 m
Natural resources: none presently exploited; iron ore, chromium, copper, gold, nickel, platinum and other minerals, and coal and hydrocarbons have been found in small, uncommercial quantities
Land use:
arable land:
0%
permanent crops:
0%
permanent pastures:
0%
forests and woodland:
0%
other:
100% (ice 98%, barren rock 2%)
Irrigated land: 0 sq km (1993)
Natural hazards: katabatic (gravity-driven) winds blow coastward from the high interior; frequent blizzards form near the foot of the plateau; cyclonic storms form over the ocean and move clockwise along the coast; volcanism on Deception Island and isolated areas of West Antarctica; other seismic activity rare and weak
Environment - current issues: in 1998, NASA satellite data showed that the antarctic ozone hole was the largest on record, covering 27 million square kilometers; researchers in 1997 found that increased ultraviolet light coming through the hole damages the DNA of icefish, an antarctic fish lacking hemoglobin; ozone depletion earlier was shown to harm one-celled antarctic marine plants
Geography - note: the coldest, windiest, highest (on average), and driest continent; during summer, more solar radiation reaches the surface at the South Pole than is received at the Equator in an equivalent period; mostly uninhabitable
- See also : Antarctica