Antarctica is Earth's southernmost continent, and contains the South Pole.
It is the 5th largest continent and is nearly twice the size of Australia.
Antarctica, on average, is the coldest, driest, and windiest continent and has the highest average elevation of all the continents. Its average precipitation is only 200mm per year.
There are no permanent human residents, but anywhere from 1,000 to 5,000 people reside throughout the year at the research stations scattered across the continent.
Only cold-adapted organisms survive there.
About 98% of Antarctica is covered by the Antarctic ice sheet, a sheet of ice averaging at least 1.6 km thick. The continent has about 90% of the world's ice.
Temperatures reach a minimum of between −80 °C and −90 °C a maximum of between 5 °C and 15 °C near the coast in summer.
A number of governments maintain permanent manned research stations throughout the continent.
Antarctica has no government, although various countries claim sovereignty in certain regions (such as the U.K., New Zealand, France, Norway, and Australia).
Warmup questions - answer these questions with a partner or in a small group
1. Where is Antarctica?
2. More and more people are travelling there. Why do you think they go there?
3. What is ecotourism?
4. What do ecology and tourism have in common?
