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Antarctica - The Coolest Place on Earth (literally!)
Antarctica - The Coolest Place on Earth (litteraly!)
Population: 0
Average Weather: 5-15?C on the coast in the summer and -80?C in the winter
Considered a desert, it gets less than 200mm (that's 8 inches) of precipitation a year. There are no permanent residents...well not of the human kind anyways. Although there are no permanent residents, there are usually between 1000-5000 scientists and researchers that rotate through the continent seasonally every year.
Virtually completely untouched by humans, Antarctica is home to various specifies of birds, including penguins…and let’s face it, we all fell in love with the waddling creatures when we watched March of the Penguins! While on the water you may just spot some seals, blue whales, and orcas.
Fun Facts:
* 90% of the ice on earth is located on Antarctica
* The colder temperature ever recorded on the planet is -89.2?C and it was recorded at a Russian Vostok Research Station in Antarctica in 1983.
* 14,000,000 square kilometres…that’s 1.3 times the size of Europe!
* At least 10 babies have been born in West Antarctica…what nationality would a baby being there be assigned? I’d love to know since there is no established government and nobody owns Antarctica so they sure don’t get an Antarctic passport!
Glacier cruising is an experience on its own as some glaciers and icebergs are so enormous that they dwarf cruise ships! Antarctica cruises also tend to be more of an expedition with Glaciologists and Biologists onboard giving lectures and educating the eager crowds.
If you’re looking at cruising Antarctica, you may want to do so quickly. As of August 2011, the International Maritime Organization will implement a ban on the use and the carriage of heavy fuel oil for ships sailing in Antarctica. What does this mean for you? Some of the larger ships will no longer be able to take you through the area due to the risk of an oil spill that may devastate the Antarctic ecozone.
