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Antarctica is the fifth-largest continent, being about 40% larger than Europe, and has an area of 14,200,000 km 2 (5,500,000 sq mi). Most of Antarctica is covered by the Antarctic ice sheet, with an average thickness of 1.9 km (1.2 mi).
Antarctica, the world’s southernmost continent, is almost wholly covered by an ice sheet and is about 5.5 million square miles (14.2 million square km) in size.
Without any ice, Antarctica would emerge as a giant peninsula and archipelago of mountainous islands, known as Lesser Antarctica, and a single large landmass about the size of Australia, known as Greater Antarctica.
Antarctica, a continent of unparalleled ice and stark beauty, is Earth’s southernmost landmass, representing a vital frontier for scientific research and a testament to nature’s formidable power.
During summer, Antarctica is on the side of Earth tilted toward the sun and is in constant sunlight. In the winter, Antarctica is on the side of Earth tilted away from the sun, causing the continent to be dark. Antarctica is considered a desert because it receives very little rain or snowfall.
“Abrupt changes” threaten to send the continent past the point of no return, at which point continued ice-melting would submerge coastal cities around the world.
Visit the Definitions and Notes page to view a description of each topic.
Cool Australian Antarctic Program news about wildlife, scientific research, stations (bases), expeditioners, ships, the environment and jobs in Antarctica.
An abrupt change in Antarctica has caused the continent to gain ice. But this increase, documented in NASA satellite data, is a temporary anomaly rather than an indication that global warming has...
Antarctica (/ ænˈtɑːrktɪkə / ⓘ) [note 1] is Earth 's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest continent, being about 40% larger than Europe, and has an area of 14,200,000km2 (5,500 ...