Antarctica

[ant-ahrk-ti-kuh, -ahr-ti-]

noun

1. the continent surrounding the South Pole: almost entirely covered by an ice sheet. About 5,000,000 sq. mi. (12,950,000 sq. km).

Antarctica

/ æntˈɑːktɪkə /

noun

1. a continent around the South Pole: consists of an ice-covered plateau, 1800–3000 m (6000 ft to 10 000 ft) above sea level, and mountain ranges rising to 4500 m (15 000 ft) with some volcanic peaks; average temperatures all below freezing and human settlement is confined to research stations. All political claims to the mainland are suspended under the Antarctic Treaty of 1959

Antarctica

1. Continent surrounding the South Pole, located almost entirely within the Antarctic Circle. It is covered by an ice cap up to thirteen thousand feet thick.

Antarctica is characterized by extremely low temperatures.

In 1911, Roald Amundsen became the first explorer to reach the South Pole, followed shortly thereafter by Robert Scott.

Example Sentences

"Their hearts must have sunk seeing this black flag against the whiteness of Antarctica," said David Waterhouse, curator of the polar museum at SPRI.

From BBC

Scientists around the world will now share and analyse these precious mud samples to work out how human activity - including a century of industrial whaling - affected Antarctica and the rest of our planet.

From BBC

Harmful algal blooms have been reported on every continent except Antarctica.

From Salon

"Dennis was one of the many brave personnel who contributed to the early science and exploration of Antarctica under extraordinarily harsh conditions," says Professor Dame Jane Francis, director of the British Antarctic Survey .

From BBC

Moisture lost to evaporation and drought, plus runoff from pumped groundwater, now outpaces the melting of glaciers and the ice sheets of either Antarctica or Greenland as the largest contributor of water to the oceans.

From Salon