Extreme conditions at the southern end of the world
The Antarctic includes the continent itself and the surrounding Antarctic Ocean. Enormous icebergs and penguins are the images which the region evokes, but there is far more to the place referred to as the 'Earth's last wilderness'. The vast area around the South Pole is a region full of extremes and one which breaks a number of records:
The Antarctic ice sheet is the largest contiguous ice mass in the world. Only about two percent of the continent is ice-free. The thickness of the ice ranges between 0 and nearly 5,000 metres.
The Don Juan Pond in the west end of Wright Valley in Victoria Land has a salinity level of over 40%, making it the saltiest waterbody on Earth.
At the South Pole itself, the sun does not set from late September through late March. There are six months of polar day and polar night each in Antarctica, which is why there are only two seasons: summer and winter.
Antarctica is the continent with the highest average terrain elevation, an average of 2,500 metres. However, the Bentley Subglacial Trench in West Antarctica is also the lowest point on the surface of the earth not covered by ocean – nearly 2,500 metres deep.
The lowest recorded temperature – minus 89.2 degrees Celsius – was measured at the Russian station Vostok in July 1983. There are also strong katabatic, or fall winds in Antarctica, which reach speeds of up to 300 km/h.
Mount Erebus on Ross Island is the world's southernmost active volcano. There are even hot springs on Deception Island.
The high terrain elevation, extremely low temperatures and correspondingly low levels of precipitation also make Antarctica the driest region – and largest desert – in the world.
Despite the harsh environment the Antarctic Ocean and its coastal regions are teeming with life which has adapted to the extreme conditions.
