Antarctica is a continent defined by extremes. This vast, remote landmass is the coldest, windiest, and highest continent on Earth. Its unique physical properties and geopolitical status mean that science reigns supreme and the rules that govern the rest of the world simply do not apply.
Extreme Geography and Hidden Worlds
Antarctica is technically the world’s largest desert, receiving extremely low levels of precipitation, often less than 100 millimeters annually. This makes certain areas, like the McMurdo Dry Valleys, among the driest places on the planet, where strong katabatic winds actively sublimate any moisture. The Dry Valleys stand as the largest ice-free region on the continent, covering thousands of square kilometers of exposed soil and gravel.
The continent’s ice sheet averages more than two kilometers (1.2 miles) in thickness. In many locations, the underlying continental bedrock is pushed more than 2.5 kilometers below sea level due to the weight of the ice. Despite these frigid conditions, a vast network of over 400 subglacial lakes exists, with the water remaining liquid due to a combination of high pressure from the ice above and geothermal heat rising from the Earth’s interior.
The Unique Rules of Life
Life on the Antarctic landmass completely lacks native trees, reptiles, and amphibians. Terrestrial ecosystems are dominated by microscopic organisms, mosses, and lichens found in the few ice-free areas. Among the most resilient creatures are tardigrades, often called water bears, which survive extreme freezing and desiccation by entering a suspended metabolic state.
The marine ecosystem thrives, with the foundational Antarctic krill forming one of the largest single-species biomasses on the planet. Estimates place the cumulative mass of these shrimp-like crustaceans in the hundreds of millions of metric tons, supporting nearly all other marine life. A visually striking biological oddity is Blood Falls, where a plume of iron-rich, hypersaline brine emerges from the Taylor Glacier. The crimson color is caused by the iron oxidizing upon contact with air. This brine originates from a subglacial reservoir that hosts a unique microbial ecosystem thriving without sunlight or oxygen.
A Continent of Treaties, Not Citizens
Antarctica is governed by the Antarctic Treaty System, which designates the continent as a preserve for peaceful, scientific purposes. Signed in 1959, the treaty prevents new territorial claims or military activity. This unique geopolitical arrangement makes Antarctica the only continent on Earth without a native or permanent citizen population.
Antarctica has no official time zone, since all lines of longitude converge at the South Pole. Research stations generally adopt the time zone of their home country, leading to a patchwork of different times across the continent. Antarctica is also an exceptional site for collecting extraterrestrial material. The flow of the ice sheet acts as a natural conveyor belt, concentrating dark meteorites in blue ice areas where they are preserved by the cold, dry environment.