Discovery
It’s been only 100 years since humans first occupied Antarctica (1899), and about 180 years since seafarers saw the islands of the Antarctic Peninsula (1819).
Location on our planet
Antarctica is located south of the Antarctic Circle, (66.5 degrees south Latitude). Only the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula and part of Wilkes Land protrudes north of that line. Area of Antarctica is 14 million sq. km.
Neighbors
Of all the continents, Antarctica is the 5th largest. The other continents that are closest to Antarctica are South Africa, Australia and the closest is the southern tip of South America which is only 1000 km. away.
past names and Flags
This is a picture of the current Antarctic flag.
Most early explorers were convinced the continent existed. They called it Terra Australis Incognita.In 2002, a flag, by Graham Bertram was
approved by the Antarctic Treaty Organization and is being used as an informal flag
of the continent. On the other hand, there are other designs being suggested
and reviewed. The Flag was first hoisted
on the continent in 2002. When he planned the flag, Bertram was cognizant of
the converging territorial demands of Chile, the United Kingdom, and Argentina.
This version is probably the most famous design for the continent.
Population
There are no natives in Antarctica. Antarctica has a very multicultural population, because of scientific research going on the continent. Australia, Chile, and Argentina, France, New Zealand, Norway and the United Kingdom claim exclusive economic zone (EEZ) rights. Twenty-one of Twenty-eight Antarctic consultative nations have made no claims to Antarctic territory and do not recognize the claims of the others. The only truly international zone on earth, there are many treaties governing the cooperative uses. At the present time, there are fourteen research stations in Antarctica.
Population of people per country
Argentina-184 Australia-62 Brazil-12
Chile-108 China-65 France-33
France/Italy-12 Germany-9 India-25
Japan-40 New Zealand-12 Norway-6
Poland-15 Republic of Korea-16 Russia-148
South Africa-10 Ukraine-12 United Kingdom-38
Uruguay-9 USA -346
Total- 1,162
Population of people per country
Argentina-184 Australia-62 Brazil-12
Chile-108 China-65 France-33
France/Italy-12 Germany-9 India-25
Japan-40 New Zealand-12 Norway-6
Poland-15 Republic of Korea-16 Russia-148
South Africa-10 Ukraine-12 United Kingdom-38
Uruguay-9 USA -346
Total- 1,162
Cities
The people of Antarctica handle much of their own needs through home-based technology, most of the buildings in the cities are devoted to the arts and sciences, private residences, and restaurants. Antarctic cities also contain a large amount of space for parks and natural habitats. No matter where you are in an Antarctic city, you can walk to a small forest, or to a waterfall. In addition to the hundreds of small cities, townships and villages within the continent, there are some metropolises too.
Major Industries
Tourism- Tourists to Antarctica increased from 4,800 in 1991-92 to 12,248 in the 2000-01 season. Over 100 new sites to tourism have been opened up, and there is an increasing interest in “mass tourism” approaches, with larger, general-purpose vessels of aircraft for inter-continental transportation, and even discussion of “hotel” facilities ashore. The Antarctic and Southern Ocean Coalition (ASOC) that is comprised of over 200 conservation organizations from 47 countries and committed to protect the Antarctic environment warns that flora and fauna could be irreversibly damaged by increasing tourist activities in the region.Fishing-