Geography

Only two of the world's continents lie entirely within the Southern Hemisphere: Australia and Antarctica. Australia lies relatively close to the equator, while Antarctica is situated about the South Geographic Pole.

It's the coldest, largest desert of the world, but in growing numbers, tourists are making their way to Antarctica.

Most people know that Antarctica is the coldest place on Earth, but did you know it is the world's largest desert? That huge volcanoes can be found here? Or a lake the size of Lake Ontario is locked beneath the ice? Discover what else you would find in Antarctica in this section.

At first, the geography of Antarctica might seem a little confusing. From space, much of Antarctica looks featureless and white, meaning there are few features to guide you. It's one thing to know that Pine Island Glacier is in West Antarctica, but for some it might be unclear which part of the frozen continent is which.

Antarctica is unique among the continents for being almost totally covered by glacier ice. Although this ice cover in its entirety is often referred to as a single ice sheet (the Antarctic Ice Sheet), there are in fact two major areas of ice which differ from each other in both their physical characteristics and history: the East and West Antarctic Ice Sheets.

With a hostile environment, millions of kilometers of ice, and rapidly changing weather, the geography of Antarctica is a fascinating area of study. We'll take a look at some of its characteristics that make it unique.

Antarctica is the largest and most pristine wilderness on Earth, and an unrivalled natural laboratory for scientific research. Explore this section to discover fascinating facts about this amazing part of our planet.

The continent of Antarctica is located almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle, (66.5 degrees south Latitude). Only the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula and the fringes of Wilkes Land protrude north of that line.

Antarctica consists of two major regions: W Antarctica, a mountainous archipelago that includes the Antarctic Peninsula, and E Antarctica (c.3,000,000 sq mi/7,770,000 sq km), geologically a continental shield.

Scientists were able to deploy ruggidized seismometers that could withstand intense cold in Antarctica only recently. A line of seismometers strung across the West Antarctic Rift Valley and the Marie Byrd Land have given geologists their first good look at the mantle beneath the ice and rocks, revealing areas of hot rock that might affect the behavior of the overlying ice sheet.

The geography of Antarctica is dominated by its south polar location and, thus, by ice. The Antarctic continent, located in the Earth's southern hemisphere, is centered asymmetrically around the South Pole and largely south of the Antarctic Circle.