Antarctica is the southernmost continent of the world. The
continent of Antarctica is located in the southern hemisphere, south of the
Antarctic Circle. This continent is surrounded by the
Southern Ocean and it is regarded as the fifth largest continent after North America, South America, Asia and Africa. The continent of Antarctica covers an area of 14.4 million square kilometers.98% of this continent is covered with ice and the density of ice in average is 1.6 kilometers.
Antarctica experiences coolest, windiest, driest type of climatic condition. Due to less precipitation, this continent remains dry in most parts except in the coastal areas. Due to its weird climatic conditions, and lack of availability of natural resources there are no permanent residents in this area. The vegetation and wild life of this are include various algae, mosses, penguins, lichen and fur seals.
Due to the isolated location of the continent, hostile environment, and lack of resources
Antarctica has remained neglected for many years. The
Antarctic Treaty has been signed in 1959 by 12 countries, but at present there are 45 countries. This treaty is against any kind of military activity and mineral mining. On the other hand, it encourages protection of eco zone and scientific research and experimentation. Presently, various types of experiments are being conducted by many scientists of different nationalities.
The following links provide more information on Antarctica:
