Home > Factbook > Countries > Antarctica
| Location | continent mostly south of the Antarctic Circle |
| Geographic coordinates | 90 00 S, 0 00 E |
| Map references | Antarctic Region |
| Area | total: 14.2 million sq km land: 14.2 million sq km (285,000 sq km ice-free, 13.915 million sq km ice-covered) (est.) note: fifth-largest continent, following Asia, Africa, North America, and South America, but larger than Australia and the subcontinent of Europe |
| Area - comparative | slightly less than 1.5 times the size of the US |
| Land boundaries | 0 note: see entry on Disputes - international |
| Coastline | 17,968 km |
| Maritime claims | Australia, Chile, and Argentina claim Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) rights or similar over 200 nm extensions seaward from their continental claims, but like the claims themselves, these zones are not accepted by other countries; 22 of 29 Antarctic Treaty consultative parties have made no claims to Antarctic territory (although Russia and the US have reserved the right to do so); also see the Disputes - international entry |
| Climate | the coldest, windiest, and driest continent on Earth; severe low temperatures vary with latitude, elevation, and distance from the ocean; East Antarctica is colder than West Antarctica because of its higher elevation; Antarctic Peninsula has the most moderate climate; higher temperatures occur in January along the coast and average slightly below freezing; summers characterized by continuous daylight, while winters bring continous darkness; persistent high pressure over the interior brings dry, subsiding air that results in very little cloud cover |
| Terrain | about 98% thick continental ice sheet and 2% barren rock, with average elevations between 2,000 and 4,000 m; mountain ranges up to nearly 5,000 m; ice-free coastal areas include parts of southern Victoria Land, Wilkes Land, the Antarctic Peninsula area, and parts of Ross Island on McMurdo Sound; glaciers form ice shelves along about half of the coastline, and floating ice shelves constitute 11% of the area of the continent |
| Elevation extremes | highest point: Vinson Massif 4,892 m lowest point: Denman Glacier more than -3,500 m (-11,500 ft) below sea level mean elevation: 2,300 m note: the lowest known land point in Antarctica is hidden in the Denman Galcier; at its surface is the deepest ice yet discovered and the world's lowest elevation not under seawater |
| Natural resources | iron ore, chromium, copper, gold, nickel, platinum and other minerals, and coal and hydrocarbons have been found in small noncommercial quantities; mineral exploitation except for scientific research is banned by the Environmental Protocol to the Antarctic Treaty; krill, icefish, toothfish, and crab have been taken by commercial fisheries, which are managed through the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Living Marine Resources (CCAMLR) |
| Land use | agricultural land: 0% (2018 est.) |
| Natural hazards | katabatic (gravity-driven) winds blow coastward from the high interior; frequent blizzards form near the foot of the plateau; cyclonic storms form over the ocean and move clockwise along the coast; volcanism on Deception Island and isolated areas of West Antarctica; other seismic activity rare and weak; large icebergs may calve from ice shelf |
| Geography - note | the coldest, windiest, highest (on average), and driest continent; during summer, more solar radiation reaches the surface at the South Pole than is received at the Equator in an equivalent period mostly uninhabitable, 98% of the land area is covered by the Antarctic ice sheet, the largest single mass of ice on earth covering an area of 14 million sq km (5.4 million sq mi) and containing 26.5 million cu km (6.4 million cu mi) of ice (this is almost 62% of all of the world's fresh water); if all this ice were converted to liquid water, one estimate is that it would be sufficient to raise the height of the world's oceans by 58 m (190 ft) |
Source: CIA World Factbook
This page was last updated on September 18, 2021
