Information about Antarctica and Penguins

Terrain: The mountains across Antarctica divide the Antarctic continent into two parts. East Antarctica, with a large area, is an ancient shield and quasi-plain, which runs across the Antarctic mountains and stretches on the edge of the shield. West Antarctica is a small fold belt composed of mountains, plateaus and basins. There is a subsidence zone between east and west, extending from Ross Sea to Weddell Sea. Antarctica is the highest continent on earth, with an average elevation of 2350 meters. The highest point is Luoyusheng Mountain in Marybird Land, with an altitude of 5140m. The mainland is almost completely covered with ice and snow, with an average thickness of1880m and a maximum thickness of over 4000m. There are many tall ice barriers and icebergs in the ocean around the mainland. Only 2% of the land in the whole continent is not covered with ice and snow all the year round, which is called the "oasis" of Antarctic ice sheet and is the main living place for animals and plants. There are peaks, cliffs, lakes and volcanoes on the oasis. There are two active volcanoes on the Antarctic continent, namely Deception Island volcano on Deception Island and Erebus volcano on Ross Island. Deception Island volcano erupted in February 1969, which instantly reduced the scientific research station there to ashes. Until now, people are still worried about this.

Antarctica is the highest continent in the world, which was separated from Gondwana. The Hengduan Mountains in Antarctica divide the Antarctic continent into two parts. These two parts are quite different in geography and geology. East Antarctica is a very old continent with a history of hundreds of millions of years. Its center is located in the South Pole, and any seaside is far from the South Pole. East Antarctica has an average elevation of 2,500 meters and a maximum elevation of 4,800 meters. In East Antarctica, there is the largest active volcano in the Antarctic continent, namely Mount Erebus on Ross Island, with an altitude of 3,795 meters and four vents. West Antarctica is only half the size of East Antarctica. It is an archipelago, some of which are below sea level. But all the islands are covered by continental ice sheets. The older part (including southern Mary Bird Land, Ellsworth Land, Ross Ice Shelf and Queen Maud Land) has a mountain system composed of granite and sedimentary rocks. The mountain system extends southward to the central part of the Antarctic Peninsula and protrudes northward. The northern part of West Antarctica, that is, the higher part, was caused by volcanic movement during the Tertiary geological period. Mount Vincent (5 140m), the highest point in Antarctica, is located in the west of Antarctica. 98% of the Antarctic continent is covered by a permanent ice sheet with a diameter of 4,500 kilometers, with an average thickness of 2,000 meters and a maximum thickness of 4,750 meters. The Antarctic ice shelf covers an area of 2.65 million square kilometers in summer and can extend to 55 degrees south latitude in winter, reaching 6.5438+0.88 million square kilometers. The total ice storage capacity is 29.3 million cubic kilometers, accounting for 90% of the total ice in the world. If it melts, global sea level will rise by about 60 meters. The Antarctic ice sheet has pushed the area of Antarctic continent 1/3 below the sea level, and even pushed it below 1 1,000 meters in some places. The Antarctic ice sheet extends outward from the center. Under the condition of valley topography, the movement of ice is flowing, so glaciers are formed, and the speed of glacier movement varies from 100 m to 1000 m. Every year, huge ice cubes discharged into the ocean due to fracture form icebergs. Coastal touchdown icebergs can exist for many years, while untouched icebergs drift northward and gradually melt under the action of tides and currents. Antarctica is called the "cold pole". The fundamental reason for the low temperature in Antarctica is that the Antarctic ice sheet reflects 80% of the solar radiation, which leads to the shortage of Antarctic heat and becomes a permanently frozen and ice-covered continent. There are only two seasons in Antarctica: winter and summer. April ~ 10 is winter, and June 1 10 is summer. The average monthly temperature in the Antarctic coastal area in summer is about 0℃, and it is-15℃ ~-35℃ in the inland area. In winter, the average monthly temperature in coastal areas is-15℃ ~-30℃, and in inland areas it is -40℃ ~-70℃. The lowest Antarctic temperature recorded at the "Oriental" station of the former Soviet Union is -88.3℃? . Antarctic temperature decreases with the increase of latitude and altitude. Although Antarctica stores 75% of the world's fresh water resources, it exists in a permanent solid state, so it is an extremely dry continent, known as the "white desert". The average annual rainfall in Antarctica is 1.20 mm ~ 1.50 mm, which is 900 mm in coastal areas and only 50 mm in inland areas. Some areas are only 20 mm to 30 mm, and the Antarctic "westerly belt" is the most dangerous area for maritime navigation. Between 50 ~ 70 degrees south latitude, there are many low-pressure cyclones from west to east, sometimes as high as 6 ~ 7, and the wind speed can reach 85 kilometers per hour. Catabatic winds moving from the polar regions with higher altitude in the Antarctic continent to the coastal regions with lower terrain are particularly strong, with the maximum wind speed reaching 300 km/h, sometimes blowing for several days. Antarctica is the farthest and loneliest continent on earth. Its cold and perennial ice and snow have long shut people out. For hundreds of years, in order to conquer Antarctica and uncover its mystery, thousands of explorers have rushed to Antarctica, showing their indomitable spirit and creating epic achievements, which have made great contributions to our understanding of the mysterious Antarctic today. While enjoying the beautiful scenery of Antarctica, we will not forget to pay high tribute to them.

Antarctica is the southernmost point determined by the way the earth rotates. It usually represents the geographical Antarctic region and has a fixed position. According to the internationally accepted concept, the area south of 66.5 degrees south latitude (Antarctic Circle) is called Antarctica, which is the floorboard of the Southern Ocean, its islands and the Antarctic continent, with a total area of about 65 million square kilometers.

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It is composed of the mainland, continental marginal ice and islands around Antarctica, of which the mainland area is 654.38+0.2393 million square kilometers, the continental marginal ice area is 654.38+0.582 million square kilometers and the island area is 76,000 square kilometers.

definition

Literally, the South Pole is the southernmost tip of the earth. In fact, it has many meanings, such as Antarctic, Antarctic continent, Antarctic region and Antarctic circle. The geographical South Pole is the South Pole and the South Magnetic Pole. In addition, it is also the name of a gamepad manufacturer.

South Pole

At present, the South Pole is located in Antarctica and marked. However, due to continental drift, Antarctica has been far away from the South Pole for most of the earth's history. In addition, every once in a while, geographers must correct the position of the South Pole. The last revision of the Antarctic position was when the Antarctic region entered the year 2000.

In addition, in astronomy, if you project the South Pole onto the celestial sphere, you can get the South Pole.

South Pole

The "south magnetic pole" is one of the two magnetic poles of the earth. It is located near the geographical south pole, but its position is also changing slowly and constantly. 1909 65438+ 10/0/6, written by Ernest? The expedition led by Ernest shackleton discovered the South Pole.

the Antarctic Circle

The latitude of 66 degrees and 34 minutes south latitude is the Antarctic circle. The polar circle will have extreme days and nights, and the polar circle is also the dividing line between temperate zone and cold zone.

Antarctica

Antarctica includes the Antarctic continent and its surrounding islands, with a total area of about 6,543,800 square kilometers, including 6,543,800 square kilometers for the mainland, 76,000 square kilometers for the islands and 24,700 kilometers for the coastline. There are about 6.5438+0.582 million square kilometers of ice shelves in Antarctica. The area of Antarctica accounts for one tenth of the total land area of the earth, which is equivalent to one and a half China people and a big country.

Antarctic continent

Antarctic continent refers to the land except the surrounding islands in Antarctica, and it is the latest continent discovered in the world. It is lonely at the southernmost tip of the earth. More than 95% of the Antarctic continent is covered with extremely thick ice and snow, which is called "white continent". Among the six continents in the world, Antarctica is bigger than Australia, ranking fifth. Antarctica and Australia are the only two continents in the world surrounded by oceans, surrounded by the Pacific Ocean, the Atlantic Ocean and the Indian Ocean, forming a huge hydrosphere around the earth, which is completely closed (see Antarctic Ocean). They are continents far away from other continents and completely isolated from the civilized world. So far, there are still no permanent residents, and only a few researchers take turns to live and work temporarily in a few research stations.

mineral resources

The Antarctic region is extremely rich in mineral resources. According to the identified distribution of resources, the reserves of coal, iron and oil rank first in the world, and other mineral resources are still being explored. It is expected that more and richer mineral resources will be found in the Antarctic region, which will provide scientific basis for human beings to use these resources.

Permian coal seams in Antarctic continent are mainly distributed under the Antarctic ice sheet, with a reserve of about 500 billion tons.

Iron ore is one of the richest mineral resources in Antarctica. On the Antarctic continent, it is mainly distributed in the southeast pole. According to scientists' investigation, in the stratum in the south of Prince Charles Mountain, there was a banded magnetite-rich rock with a thickness of 400 meters, a length of120km ~180km and a width of 5km ~10km, with an average grade of 32% ~ 58%, which is an iron-rich deposit with industrial mining value. Interestingly, if you go north along the longitude range of Prince Charles Mountain in Antarctica (60 degrees north latitude to 70 degrees north latitude), it is almost in the Arctic region with the same longitude and almost symmetry, and it is also a world-class large iron ore area.

Antarctic oil reserves are about 50 billion to 654.38+00 billion barrels, and natural gas reserves are about 300 billion to 500 billion cubic meters. The Ross Sea, Weddell Sea, Bellingsgar Sea and Antarctic continental shelf in Antarctica are the main producing areas of oil fields and natural gas.

In the Antarctic region, there are still many resources to be identified, and the results of resource exploration in various countries have not been fully disclosed. Therefore, scientists in China still need to make further efforts.

Sovereignty issue

From the 1920s to the 1940s of 19, explorers from all over the world discovered different regions of the Antarctic continent. The governments of nine countries, including Britain, New Zealand, Germany, South Africa, Australia, France, Norway, Chile and Argentina, formally claimed sovereignty over parts of Antarctica, which cast a shadow of international disputes over this peaceful land that has been frozen for thousands of years.

According to the International Antarctic Treaty adopted in June 196 1, the territorial sovereignty claims of the above nine countries to Antarctica were frozen, stipulating that Antarctica can only be used for peaceful purposes. It can be said that Antarctica does not belong to any country now, but belongs to all mankind.

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The Antarctic continent is the most difficult continent to reach. The nearest continent to the Antarctic continent is South America, with a 970-kilometer-wide Drake Strait between them. The Antarctic continent is not only far from other continents, but also surrounded by ice shelves and floating ice for several kilometers or even hundreds of kilometers. The area of ice floes in winter can reach190,000 square kilometers. Even in the Antarctic summer, its area is 2.6 million square kilometers; There are tens of thousands of huge icebergs floating in the waters around the Antarctic continent, which has caused great difficulties and dangers for maritime navigation.

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The highest continent on earth is the Antarctic continent. The average elevation of other continents on the earth is: 950m in Asia, 700m in North America, 600m in South America, 560m in Africa, the lowest in Europe, only 300m. The average elevation in Oceania is not clear, and it is estimated to be only a few hundred meters. The Antarctic continent, in terms of its natural surface, has an average elevation of 2350 meters, which is much higher than that of Asia and the highest in other continents. However, if the ice sheet covering the Antarctic continent is peeled off, its average height is only 4 10 meter, which is far lower than the average height of the whole land on the earth.

The owner of the Antarctic penguin

Penguins are indigenous people of the Antarctic, and people call them the symbol of the Antarctic, and they deserve it. First, due to the large number, high density and wide distribution of penguins, it has been found that there are about 654.38 billion penguins in the Antarctic region, accounting for 654.38+0/654.38+00 of the total number of seabirds in the world, which are distributed on the coast of the Antarctic continent and the islands in the sub-Antarctic region. When people landed in Antarctica, the first thing they noticed was the penguins all over the mountains. Penguins bring vitality to the cold and lonely world of ice and snow in Antarctica.

Second, because the penguin looks cute, especially its dignified, polite and gentlemanly demeanor, it left a deep impression on people.

Thirdly, because penguins have been in Antarctica for generations, they have exercised and created a hard work to adapt to the harsh environment in Antarctica-the special physiological function of low temperature tolerance.

Fourthly, because of the unique living habits of penguins, such as male penguins hatching eggs, young penguins kindergartens, etc., it has long been passed down as anecdotes.

Fifth, because penguins are a symbol of cold, people think of Antarctica, the coldest pole in the world, when they see penguins. No wonder the products in the world cold drink industry often use penguins as trademarks. In midsummer, seeing penguins will give people a cool feeling.

It is the mysterious world of Antarctica that gave birth to such a strange "resident". Antarctic penguins, like polar bears, have become well-known representative animals.

About 200 million years ago, Gondwana began to split and disintegrate, and the Antarctic continent separated and began to drift south. At this time, it happened that a group of flying animals flew over the ocean. They found the drifting Antarctic continent, so they circled around it and watched, and finally they decided to land on this land. At first, they lived a very happy life there, with no worries about food and clothing. However, the good times did not last long. As the mainland moves south, the weather becomes colder and colder. They want to fly, but there is nowhere to fly. Surrounded by vast fields of ice and snow, they have no choice but to stay in this land. Soon the Antarctic continent reached the polar region, and after a long time, it was finally covered with thick ice and snow. It turned out that a large number of lush creatures died, and only the ancestor of penguins, a flying animal, survived. However, they have completely changed, from flying to not flying, from wide fluffy feathers to fine needle-like feathers, and their slender bodies have become short and fat. The physiological function has also undergone profound changes, and the ability to resist low temperature has been enhanced. With the passage of time and the turn of the century, they finally became modern penguins and became indigenous people in the Antarctic region.

Although the above statement is somewhat bizarre, it is not entirely out of thin air and has certain scientific basis. Paleontologists have discovered penguin-like fossils in Antarctica. The analysis results show that this penguin-like bird at that time has some characteristics of amphibians, with a height of about 1 m and a weight of 9.3 kg. Maybe this is the predecessor of penguin.

There are about 20 species of penguins in the world, all of which are distributed in the southern hemisphere, with the Antarctic continent as the center and the southern tip of Africa, South America and Oceania as the north, mainly distributed in the mainland coast and some islands.

There are seven kinds of Antarctic penguins: Emperor Penguin, Adelie Penguin, Golden Penguin (also known as Papua Penguin), Hooded Penguin (also known as Antarctic Penguin), Emperor Penguin (also known as King Penguin), Rocky Penguin and Flashy Penguin. These seven species of penguins breed in the Antarctic convergence zone.

There are more than 10 species of penguins outside Antarctica, such as ring penguin, red ring penguin, mackerel ring penguin, spotted ring penguin, thick-billed penguin, vertical-crowned penguin, yellow-eyed penguin, white-winged fin-footed penguin, small-finned penguin, etc., belonging to temperate and subtropical species, all smaller than Antarctic penguins, and some have white spots on their backs.

The * * * isomorphic features of Antarctic penguins are: streamlined body, black feathers on the back, white feathers on the abdomen, flippers, thin tubular feathers, needle-like arrangement, short legs, webbed toes, short tail, fat body, big belly and stumbling. Different kinds of penguins have obvious characteristics and are easy to identify. The main characteristics of seven species of penguins in Antarctica are as follows.

There are not many species of Antarctic penguins, but the number is considerable. According to long-term observation and estimation by ornithologists, there are nearly 65.438+0.2 billion penguins in the Antarctic region, accounting for 87% of the total number of penguins in the world and 90% of the total number of Antarctic seabirds. The largest number is Adelie penguins, about 50 million, followed by crested penguins, about 3 million, and the smallest number is emperor penguins, about 570 thousand.

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