Beta
Curated by Lyn Goldsworthy and 3 others
Antarctica, is Earth's frozen content, the most wild and intact landscape on the planet. Rich with marine wildlife from penguins and whales to microscopic krill which underpin the food chain of this extraordinary ecosystem.
Penguins. Image: Derek Oyen on unsplash
About the region
Larger than Europe and twice the size of Australia, Antarctica is located at the southernmost part of Earth. Surrounded entirely by the Southern Ocean, Antarctica is isolated from the other continents - meaning it has a unique climate and ecosystem.
Antarctica experiences six months a year of continues daylight in summer and six months of continuous darkness in winter.
Antarctica is Earth's coldest continent - with temperatures dropping below -80 degrees celsius in the interior during winter.
Antarctica plays a crucial role in planet Earth's ecology and climate system. The Antarctic Circumpolar current is the world's largest ocean current, and Antarctica's ice stores about 70% of the world's freshwater.
Ice Shelf
Antarctica - Jay Ruzesky
Southern ocean and Antarctica. Image: Torsten Dederichs
Penguins on shelf, Antarctica. Image: Tam Minton
Leopard Seal. Image: Rod Long
Antarctica. Image: Jay Ruzesky on Unsplash
Conservation
Global warming, habitat loss (especially loss of ice shelves), invasive species, fishing pressures and an increasing human footprint are putting increased pressure on the ecology of this wild continent.
Foundational conservation efforts include the Antarctic Treaty System, which was established in the 1960s, to protect flora and fauna, limit mining exploitation and to guide the establishment of marine protected areas.
Antarctica and the southern ocean are a crucial component of this century's challenge of stablising the Earth's climate and finding where people and life on Earth can thrive together.
Southern Ocean and Antarctica. Image: Torsten Dederichs on Unsplash
Nature
The harsh cold conditions on Earth's frozen continent make conditions for life difficult, yet Antarctica is home to an extraordinary array of life.
Terrestrial life include flowering plants on the Antarctic Peninsula, various algae, mosses and lichens.
Marine life is rich, with penguins (such as the Adelie, and Emperor penguin), seals, and whales part of the rich marine ecosystem of the Southern Ocean and particularly Antarctica's coastal shelves. Krill plays a central role in underpinning the web of marine life in the Southern Ocean.
Antartica, the Southern Ocean and the sub-Antarctic islands host a rich variety of extraordinary life, including penguins, seals, and whales
The dramatic-looking rockhopper penguin is characterised by its red eyes, upright yellow head feathers along a supercilium stripe and a crest of black feathers on top. They are separated into three sub-species, photographer here by ecologist Dr Eric Woehler (OAM) and located around the Antarctic and sub-Antarctic zones.
Community
A rich community of scientists, ecologists, and researchers from the international community are involved with monitoring, researching and working to conserve Earth's wildest continent.
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