Geographically Important & Unique : Antarctica
Antarctica, larger than Europe or, makes up one-tenth of earth’s land mass. However, this continent is far from hospitable, with sustain winds reaching 192 mph and temperatures as low as negative 89 degrees Celsius. This continent lies in the Southern Ocean. Visit this site for further information on antarctica travel information.
These Antarctic marine ecosystem supports some of the richest nutrient flows on the planet and is home to whales, seals and dolphins. Large quantities of tiny shrimp-like creatures called krill live within these ice-covered waters. The chief food of the seals, whales and penguins is krill, and it is also utilized by humans in Japan.
Any creatures living in Antarctica must become accustomed to the dry, windy and cold weather conditions that grow to extremes on that continent. The continent features not only the greatest altitude anywhere, but also has a severely limited amount of rain both on the coast and inland. The creatures that can survive here include mostly seals and penguins, while plant-life consists of tundra and algae.
There is a very unique condition here in Antarctica that makes it critically valuable to mankind. The atmosphere is comprised of a variety of molecules, and the heavier ones have a tendency to settle near the poles of our planet, making the greenhouse effect more pronounced in these areas. The sun’s luminous energy is soaked up at the Earth’s poles near the exterior, making things a little warmer. When you would like to get more information on antarctic travel check out this site.
The atmosphere contains almost 79 percent nitrogen and 21 percent oxygen. There are also minute amounts of carvbon dioxide and methane. The back-radiation from earth is absorbed into the gases and water vapor, warming the air. This is commonly acknowledged as the greenhouse effect.
The more severe climate areas by the equator take in the various gases more quickly than the more moderate weather locations. Because this tremendous heat generated by the Greenhouse effect is so much more extreme than that of other areas, Antartica is the subject of a great deal of scientific scrutiny.
The ice sheet that covers Antarctica is nearly 3 miles thick. This tremendous thickness is a build up of snow accumulated over many centuries. Drilling in order to research core samples of prehistoric air bubbles and atomic isotopes is revealing vast amounts of information on prehistoric eras.
The well-known ozone layer breach is said to be the result of harmful CFC’s … an atmospheric imbalance caused by these toxic pollutants. These refrigerants combine poorly with ozone. The increase in temperature has resulted in the melting of many ice shelves.
Once separated, the ice shelves float north and eventually melt. The resulting additional water greatly brings up the altitude of sea level. Unfortunately, this decreases the amount of area the krill have to breed and eat.
If all of the ice in Antarctica were to thaw, this would bring up sea level about sixty yards. New York City would end up a “Venice” of sorts, with waters reaching as high as the 20th story of many large buildings. Low-lying countries like islands of the South Pacific would be completely engulfed by water.
Those who have visited this continent all reminisce about the beauty of Antarctica. Wildlife, which has had very little interaction with humans, are calm and often curious about their presence. This is a pristine world of ice and snow, untouched by humans.
Hope remains that current and future civilizations will value Antarctica enough to protect and conserve its perfect brilliance. Sadly, this continent has been dissolving slowly for decades. While measures to promote the preservation of this world have begun, with many nations helping, more are needed to protect this beauty.
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