Many people wonder if the massive continent of Antarctica is larger than Russia, the world’s biggest country. The answer is no, but the difference is smaller than many might assume given the scale of the two landmasses. This confusion often stems from the variable nature of Antarctica’s size and the inherent distortions present in most world maps.
The Fixed Area of Russia
Russia is recognized globally as the largest country by total area, encompassing a vast expanse of northern Eurasia. The country’s total area is measured consistently at approximately 17.1 million square kilometers (about 6.6 million square miles). Russia’s size allows it to span 11 different time zones and account for nearly one-eighth of the world’s inhabited land area.
Russia stretches nearly halfway around the Northern Hemisphere. To put its size into perspective, Russia is about 1.7 times larger than Canada, the world’s second-largest country.
The Variable Area of the Antarctic Continent
Defining the size of Antarctica is complex because its total area is not a fixed measurement like a country’s border. The area typically cited for the Antarctic continent is about 14.2 million square kilometers (around 5.5 million square miles). This standard measurement includes the continental landmass and the massive, grounded ice sheet that covers roughly 98% of the surface.
A more precise measurement separates the landmass from the floating ice. The underlying bedrock of the continent, excluding ice shelves and islands, measures closer to 12.3 million square kilometers (about 4.8 million square miles). The continent’s overall size is also variable due to the surrounding sea ice. During the austral winter, the sea ice periphery can grow to approximately 19 million square kilometers, almost doubling the region’s size.
Direct Comparison and Geographical Context
Russia is larger than the Antarctic continent by roughly 2.9 million square kilometers (about 1.1 million square miles). The misconception that Antarctica is larger often originates from how we visualize the world on a flat map. Most common world maps use a system known as the Mercator projection.
The Mercator projection was developed primarily for nautical navigation. However, a side effect of this design is that it drastically exaggerates the size of landmasses the further they are from the equator. Because both Russia and Antarctica are situated at high latitudes, the Mercator projection visually inflates their size. This leads to the mistaken belief that the two regions are closer in size or that Antarctica is the larger of the two.