9 interesting facts about Antarctica

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What do we know about the Antarctica? It is a continent located in the South of Earth. The continent is washed by the Atlantic Ocean, the Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean. What else do we know? We gathered the most interesting facts about the Antarctica for you to see!

1. The Antarctic was officially discovered in 1820 during a Russian naval overseas expedition led by Fabian Gottlieb Thaddeus von Bellingshausen and Mikhail Lazarev.

In the picture: the Nimrod expedition, 1909

2. The Antarctic doesn't belong to any government. In 1959 an agreement was made, known as the Antarctic Treaty System (ATC). Today 46 countries participate in the agreement. The main aim of the ATC is to provide the usage of the Antartic on behalf of the entire humanity. No nuclear explosions are allowed.

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3. The Antarctic is the only continent that has no time zones. People there use either the time of their native land or the time of providing food and equipment assistants' land.

4. The Antarctic is the coldest and the driest continent in the world. The land hasn't seen precipitations for two million years.

5. However, despite of being the driest place, the Antarctic contains 70% of the fresh water capacity of the world: in the state of ice, obviously.

6. Weddel Sea is accepted to be the cleanest in the world. You may see objects that lay at a depth of 80 meters!

7. There are no normal inhabitants in the Antarctic. The only people living there are scientists: about 5 thousands in summer and 1 thousand in winter.

8. The warmest month in the Antarctica is February.

9. The Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station on the south pole is truly isolated from the outside world. When in 1999 Dr. Jerri Lin Nielsen, who worked there, found her breast affected by cancer, she had to operate on herself.

Watch the video about the Antarctic Treaty System! (Pretty penguins are included.)