Antarctica is the worlds fifth largest continent. However it’s climate is so harsh that is has only approximately 150 permanent residents. The population can be as high as 5,000 when scientific and mining operations are taken into account. Not only is it the worlds coldest location (lowest recorded temperatures of −89.2 °C or −128.6 °F) it is also technically a desert as average rainfall is only 200mm. The continent is governed and protected by an international Antarctic Treaty system which limits the exploitation of the area and preserves its wildlife.
The continent sits symmetrically across the Southern Pole and is surrounded by the Southern Ocean. The continent possess many rivers and lakes however the largest lake, Vostok, is hidden below a thick layer of ice. Over 95% of the continent is covered with a layer of ice at least 1.6km thick which constitutes 70% pf the worlds fresh water. Most of the life is aquatic however the land mass is home to several species of Penguins.
Highest Point: Mount Vinson (4,892 metres or 16,050 feet)
Lowest Point: Bentley Subglacial Trench, which reaches 2,555 metres below sea level which is the worlds lowest point not covered by water.
Area: 14,000,000 km2 (5,400,000 sq mi)
Coastline: 17,968 km (11,165 miles)
Residents 150
The Beagle Channel is a strait separating the main island of Tierra del Fuego from various other small islands. It is one of three navigable routes linking the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans at the southern tip of the South American continent. The Strait of Magellan is further north lying between Tierra del Fuego and mainland…
The southern parts of the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans are noted for their stormy conditions and, in the days of sail, certain southern latitudes were even given names such as the Roaring Forties or Furious Fifties and the early mariners knew how to use these winds to their best advantage. However, another well known…
The continent of Antarctica is one of the most forbidding places on Earth and, despite its enormity, it remains uninhabited other than by teams of scientists. Even wildlife is almost non-existent throughout much of the continent. However one part of Antarctica reaches northward like a huge finger pointing towards the southern tip of South America….
For the true adventurers, nothing compares to a visit to the Antarctic and there is one particular island with many secrets and a blood-stained past filled with the horrors of the whaling industry. Deception Island forms part of the South Shetland Islands archipelago and, at a latitude of 62 degrees 57 minutes south, these are…