Antarctica is one of those places that belong to the popular ideology of the world . A white stage that we are all capable of recreating in our minds but that very few have actually seen . The Antarctic continent (whose name means ‘ opposite to the Arctic ‘) is the southernmost territory on Earth, containing the geographic south pole and covering an area of about 14 million square kilometers . It was first sighted in 1820 and it was not until 1895 that the first landing by a team of Norwegian explorers took place. The impressive surface and harsh weather conditions have made Antarctica one of the most inhospitable places on Earth , but also one of the most interesting and studied. Here we leave you some curiosities about that snowy giant .
1. In winter, when the sea freezes over , the Antarctic continent grows to the size of the US and Mexico combined .
2. The first tourists to arrive in Antarctica did so in 1957 , when a Pan American flight from Christchurch, New Zealand, briefly landed at McMurdo Sound .
3. It is estimated that, at any given time, there are 300,000 icebergs sailing in the Antarctic Ocean and surrounding the continent like a belt of white asteroids.
4. Why don’t penguins’ feet freeze in ice? Because otherwise they would boil with heat. Their coats and fat are so effective that their legs literally serve as air conditioning for them.
5. A few months after the first moon landing, in 1969, a team of Japanese glaciologists made an equally important discovery: the first 9 meteorites found in Antarctica . Since then, the collection has grown to 20,000 copies. There are two explanations for this abundance: that on the icy white surface they are easier to see, and that the perpetual movement of the ice concentrates them and crowds them against the trans-Antarctic mountains, the best place in the world to find meteorites.
6. “I just don’t think anyone on Earth has as bad a time as the emperor penguin.”stated Apsley Cherry-Garrard, an English Antarctic explorer, in the book ‘The Worst Trip in the World ‘, classified byNational GeographicWhat “one of the 100 best adventure books of all time“The play tells the odyssey of three men on a scientific expedition to get penguin eggs.
7. According to himAntarctic Treaty, which has ruled the continent since 1961,Antarctica does not belong to any country. It is a continent destined for science, where mining operations are prohibited. The member countries of the treaty represent 80% of the world’s population.
8. There is an “Antarctic currency”.Is namedAntarctic dollarAnd although it has no legal value, it is the most sensational item for a collector. Antarctic dollars are issued by theAntarctica Overseas Exchange Office, whatdonates much of the proceeds to student projectswho pretend to do science on ice. In addition, they are the most spectacular banknotes, adorned with penguins and icebergs.
9. Antarctic fiction literaturebegan five centuries ago with the publication in 1605 of ‘Mouth’s age et Idem ‘ (“Another world and at the same time the same“), from the BritishBishop Joseph Hall. The book is about a traveler who finds Antarctica populated by gluttons, drunks and eccentrics.
10. In 1999 a couple married at the Amundsen-Scott station of the geographic South Pole., with his companions holding hands in a circlearound the ceremonial pole. The lucky couple spent their first honeymoon night in a heated tent.
