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Antarctica (/ænˈtɑːktɨkə/ or /æntˈɑrtɨkə/) is Earth's southernmost continent, encapsulating the South Pole. It is situated in the Antarcticregion of the Southern Hemisphere, almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle, and is surrounded by the Southern Ocean. At 14.0 million km² (5.4 million sq mi), it is the fifth-largest continent in area after Asia, Africa, North America, and South America. For comparison, Antarctica is nearly twice the size of Australia. About 98% of Antarctica is covered by ice that averages at least 1 mile (1.6 km) in thickness.

Antarctica, on average, is the coldest, driest, and windiest continent, and has the highest average elevation of all the continents. Antarctica is considered a desert, with annual precipitation of only 200 mm (8 inches) along the coast and far less inland. The temperature in Antarctica has reached −89 °C (−129 °F). There are no permanent human residents, but anywhere from 1,000 to 5,000 people reside throughout the year at the research stations scattered across the continent. Only cold-adapted organisms survive there, including many types of algae, animals (for examplemites, nematodes, penguins, seals and tardigrades), bacteria, fungi, plants, and protista. Vegetation where it occurs is tundra.

Although myths and speculation about a Terra Australis ("Southern Land") date back to antiquity, the first confirmed sighting of the continent is commonly accepted to have occurred in 1820 by the Russian expedition of Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen and Mikhail Lazarev on Vostok andMirny. The continent, however, remained largely neglected for the rest of the 19th century because of its hostile environment, lack of resources, and isolation. The Antarctic Treaty was signed in 1959 by 12 countries; to date, 49 countries have signed the treaty. The treaty prohibits military activities and mineral mining, prohibits nuclear explosions and nuclear waste disposal, supports scientific research, and protects the continent'secozone. Ongoing experiments are conducted by more than 4,000 scientists from many nations

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Amazing Places

Amazing Places

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To the walrus, ice is life. An oxygen-breathing marine mammal, it relies on the ice as a place to rest, to give birth, to nurse and to migrate. And with global warming, the ice is disappearing. Their annual migration is becoming a race against time and distance, depth and disaster. (© National Geographic/Paul Nicklen)


A zebra calf stays close to its mother for months, recognizing her by voice, smell and pattern of stripes. (© National Geographic/Marc Moritsch)


Golden jellyfish of Palau receive their namesake color from algae-like, single-celled organisms named zooxanthellae, which live within jellyfish and provide it with the energy required for life. They follow the sun in a daily migration that feeds their passengers and ensures their own survival. (© National Geographic/National Geographic Television)


A male wandering albatross displays its 11-foot wingspan to a female on South Georgia Island. The courtship ritual renews their pair bond after months of roaming the Southern Ocean. (© National Geographic/Frans Lanting)

Bellowing elephant seal bulls - weighing up to four tons and as much as 15 feet long - are doing more than boasting. Their battles are often vicious, and opponents may be severely injured. The top winner becomes the colony's "beachmaster." (© National Geographic/Paul Nicklen)

Spawning salmon dominate traffic in the Ozernaya River on the Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia. (© National Geographic/Randy Olson)


Immense flocks of white pelicans funnel through the Mississippi Flyway every day during the birds' twice-yearly travels between wintering and breeding grounds. (© National Geographic/Annie Griffiths)


A sperm whale pod with a large calf migrates offshore of the Azores Islands in the eastern Atlantic. (© National Geographic/Hiroya Minakuchi/Minden Pictures)


Plains zebras typically accompany the wildebeest - danger lurks if the big equines become separated from the herd. (© National Geographic/Mitsuaki Iwago/ Minden Pictures)


An advancing white shark typically means doom for any large sea mammal it approaches, even for huge elephant seals off Guadalupe Island off Mexico's Pacific coast. (© National Geographic/Mauricio Handler)


Rangeland fences are an omnipresent barrier to the pronghorn, which is not designed for leaping high. When it tries to squeeze under, it can be ensnared in a barbed wire death trap. (© National Geographic/Joe Riis)


Dusk silhouettes a pronghorn at the Heart Mountain National Antelope Refuge in Oregon. (© National Geographic/Michael Durham/Minden Pictures)


A proboscis monkey, her infant holding tightly, makes a flying leap in the Bornean forest. (© National Geographic/Tim Laman)


Off the coast of western Australia, small fish cluster around a whale shark, using it as shelter from predators. (© National Geographic/Brian Skerry)


Mali elephants must travel in a perpetual migration across the arid Sahel region in search of food and water. Their yearly 300-mile trek is the longest known elephant migration. As the climate becomes more fickle and human demands on land and water increase, these desert nomads face an ever more uncertain fate. (© National Geographic/Anup & Manoj Shah)

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