Geography and relief of Antarctica

Remark 1

Antarctica is a continent with extremely low temperatures, lying at the south pole the globe. The entire territory of the continent is covered with ice (with the exception of small areas in the western part). total area mainland - more than a million square meters. km.

The territory of Antarctica is located in two belts - subantarctic and antarctic, lies on the Antarctic plate. As a result tectonic faults a significant part of the territory has risen. Due to the dense ice cover, the surface of the mainland is strongly dissected.

The continent is washed by the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans, the Ross, Amundsen, Bellingshausen and Weddell seas.

The major islands of the continent are Alexander I Land, Clarence and Deception. North of southern border extends the Arctic Peninsula. To major peninsulas Antarctica includes: Hut Point Peninsula, Edward VII Peninsula, Mawson Peninsula.

The Transarctic Mountains divide the territory into West and East Antarctica:

1. The western territories are distinguished by a more complex relief; numerous ridges break through the ice crust. The area adjacent to Pacific Ocean, is distinguished by the presence of small plains and nunataks - mountain peaks rising above the ice cover.
2. In the eastern part, the mountains alternate with deep depressions. The thickness of the ice hides the Gamburtsev Mountains, comparable in size to the Alps.

Remark 2

The most pure water on the planet is located in the Weddell Sea. It allows you to see from the surface at a depth of up to 70 m various representatives flora and fauna.

The length of the coastline is 30 thousand km, it is slightly indented. Coasts in the form of ice shelves or high ice cliffs. There are active and dormant volcanoes in Antarctica.

Natural resources

Antarctica has a wide variety of natural resources, highest value among which are:

1. Mineral resources. Almost all minerals are found in Antarctica. Signs and manifestations of mineral deposits were found in more than 170 places of the territory. There are rich deposits of titanium, iron, manganese, chromium, copper, nickel, platinum and gold, precious stones and gems, coal, mica. The continent has significant oil reserves.
2. Water resources. About 80% of all fresh water the globe, which represents a huge reserve. Inland ice shelves block the way. There are mountain and sheet glaciers. There are about 140 subglacial lakes under the ice sheet. Most large lake- about. The east has a depth of 1200 m.
3. biological resources. vegetable and animal world poor.
4. Recreational resources. Geomorphological (Ulvetanna Peak, Vinson Massif, Sidley and Erebus volcanoes), biological (cognitive recreation), water (kayaking, yachting, swimming in lakes, ice diving) and landscape (natural-aqua and natural-continental) resources are used as these resources. , sports recreation (track and field bike tours and marathons).

Climatic conditions

The mainland is very cold, both winter and summer. The average annual temperature is -60 ºС. The absolute minimum was recorded in 1983 and amounted to -89.2 ºС. AT winter period the temperature ranges from -60 to -75 ºС, and in summer it rises to -50 ºС. On the coast, the climate is milder, the average temperature ranges from 0 to -20 ºС.

The continent is located inside the Antarctic Circle, so in winter time there is a polar night around the clock, and in summer - a polar day.

The mainland is very far from the equator, so it gets much less heat than the rest of the earth's continents.

Antarctica is an icy desert, its surface reflects about 80% of the light into space.

They blow from high mountains strong winds(in some areas up to 320 km/h). The amount of snowfall per year, as a rule, does not exceed 10 cm.

Flora and fauna

There is no vegetation in the Antarctic desert. It is found on the outskirts of the continent, in the Antarctic oases. Mushrooms, lichens, mosses, and undersized shrubs grow on ice-free terrain. Most of all algae - about 700 species. Of the flowering plants, only Antarctic meadow grass and colobanthus kito. Meadow is a light-loving cereal plant. Small bushes can reach 20 cm. It tolerates frost well, therefore it is used to breed new frost-resistant varieties of rye and wheat. Colobanthus belongs to the clove family. The height of an adult plant does not exceed five cm, it has a pillow shape with small white and pale yellow flowers.

The fauna of Antarctica is represented by mammals, insects, birds, crustaceans, and other animals. Animals live only in places where there is vegetation. The waters surrounding the continent are rich in zooplankton. In extremely cold water ice fish live.

Remark 3

One of the largest animals living near Antarctica is the blue whale, which is attracted there. large quantity shrimp.

Leopard seals, seals, elephant seals, blue whales and humpback whales live on the coast. On the north coast you can meet emperor penguins, Adélie penguins, Sclater penguins. Sometimes black-and-white or sand-colored dolphins, also called sea cows, swim to the shores of the continent. The basis of the diet of large animals is fish, squid, krill.

Sea leopards can reach a length of 3.8 m or more. In autumn, they come close to the shore, where they hunt penguins and young fur seals.

penguin colonies and seals most often they drift on ice floes along the coast, and by the beginning of winter they gather at South Georgia.

In the fresh lakes of the mainland live daphnia, crustaceans, roundworms and blue-green algae.

Gulls, petrels and cormorants nest on the rocks. The mainland is home to skuas and arctic terns.

The nature of Antarctica is well suited to invertebrate arthropods. About 70 species of ticks and 4 species of lice live here. Of the insects on the islands, butterflies, beetles and spiders live. There are fleas, lice, mosquitoes. Only on the mainland live black-coal-colored ringing mosquitoes. The bulk of insects and invertebrates were brought to the continent by birds.

. Antarctica- the southernmost continent. He has a unique geographical position: all territory, except. The Antarctic Peninsula lies within. - Arctic Circle from the nearest mainland. South. America -. Antarctica is separated by a wide (more than 1000 km) strait. Drake. The shores of the mainland are washed by water. Quiet,. Atlantic and. Indian Oceans. Off the coast. Antarctica, they form a series of seas (Weddell,. Bellingshausen,. Amundsen,. Ross), shallowly protrude into the land. Coastline almost along its entire length it is glacial cliffs.

A peculiar geographical position in cold high latitudes defines the main features of the nature of the mainland. Main Feature is the presence of a continuous ice sheet

Research and development

Humanity for a long time did not know of its existence. Antarctica. In the XVII century, scientists and travelers speculated about the existence. Southern land, but could not find it. famous navigator. J.. Cook in time world travel 1772-1775 crossed three times. Southern arctic circle In 1774, it reached 71 ° 10 "S, but when it came across solid ice, it turned. The results of this expedition diverted the attention of researchers from the sixth continent for some time.

AT early XIX The British discovered small islands south of 50 ° S. In 1819, the first Russian Antarctic expedition was organized to search. southern mainland she was led. F. Bellingsau. Uzen and. MLazarev on the ships "Vostok" and "MirnyMirny".

Among researchers. Antarctica, conquered for the first time. South Pole, were Norwegian. R. Amundsen (December 14, 1911) and Englishman. R. Scott(January 18, 1912)

For the first half of the XX century. Antarctica has been visited by more than 100 expeditions from different countries. Comprehensive study mainland began in the second half of XX in 1955-1958 during the preparation and implementation. of the International Geophysical Year, large expeditions were organized by a number of countries using modern technology 1959 was signed by a number of countries. Agreement on Antarctica. Behind it, it is forbidden to use the continent for military purposes, it is assumed freedom scientific research and exchange of scientific information.

Today. Antarctica is the continent of science and international cooperation. More than 40 scientific stations and bases belonging to 17 countries that carry out research in. Antarctica in 1994, at the former English and scientific station "Faraday", a group of scientists from Ukraine began work (today it is the Ukrainian station "Akademik. Vernadsky" y ").

Relief and minerals

. Relief. Antarctica double decker: top - glacial, bottom - indigenous ( Earth's crust). The ice sheet of the mainland was formed more than 20 million years ago. The average height of the subglacial surface. Antarctica is 410 m .. On the mainland there are mountains and mountains with a maximum height of more than 5000 m and huge (up to 30% of the mainland area) troughs lying in some places 2500 m below sea level. All these relief elements, with a few exceptions, are covered with an ice shell, the average thickness of which is 2200 m, and the maximum thickness is 4000-5000 m. If the ice cover is taken as the surface of the mainland, then. Antarctica is the most high mainland. Earth ( average height- 2040 m). Glacial shell. Antarctica has a domed surface, slightly raised in the center and lowered to the edge of the edges.

Most of the base. Antarctica lies. Antarctic Precambrian platform. The Trans-Antarctic Mountains divide the mainland into western and eastern parts. West coast. Antarctica is very cut, and the ice sheet here is less thick and broken by numerous ridges. V. The Pacific part of the mainland during the period of Alpine orogeny arose mountain systems- continuation. Andes. South. America -. Antarctic. Andes. They contain the most high part mainland - array. Vinson (5140 m0 m).

V. East. Antarctica subglacial relief is predominantly flat. Some parts of the bedrock surface lie well below ocean level. Here the ice sheet reaches maximum power. It breaks off to the sea with a steep ledge, forming ice shelves. largest ice shelf in the world - a glacier. Ros-sa, whose width is 800 km, and the length is 1100 k0 km.

In the depths. Antarctica discovered various minerals: ores of ferrous and non-ferrous metals, coal, diamonds and others. But mining them in harsh conditions mainland is associated with great difficulties

Climate

. Antarctica is the coldest continent on. Earth. One of the reasons for the severity of the climate of the mainland is its height. But the root cause of glaciation is not height, but geographical location, which determines a very small angle of incidence. sun rays. In conditions polar night there is a strong cooling of the mainland. This is especially evident in inland areas, where even in summer the average daily temperatures do not rise above -30 °. C, and in winter they reach -60 ° -70 °. C at the Vostok station, the lowest temperature on Earth (-89.2 ° C) was recorded. On the coast of the mainland, temperatures are much higher: in summer - up to 0 ° C, in winter - up to -10-25 ° to -10 .. .-25 °С.

As a result of strong cooling, an area is formed in the inner part of the continent high pressure(baric maximum), from which constant winds blow towards the ocean, especially strong on the coast in a band 600-800 km wide.

On average, the mainland receives about 200 mm of precipitation per year, in central parts their number does not exceed several tens of millimeters

Inland waters

. Antarctica is the area of ​​greatest glaciation. Earth 99% of the mainland is covered with a thick ice sheet (the volume of ice is 26 million km3). The average thickness of the cover is 1830 m, the maximum is 4776 m. V. The Antarctic ice cover contains 87% of the earth's ice volume.

From the inner thick parts of the dome, the ice spreads to the outskirts, where its thickness

much less. In summer on the outskirts at temperatures above 0 °. C the ice is melting, but the land is not freed from the ice cover, since there is a constant influx of ice from the center

Off the coast there are small areas of land free of ice - Antarctic oases. These are rocky deserts, sometimes with lakes, their origin is not fully understood.

organic world

Peculiarities organic world. Antarctica is associated with a harsh climate. This is the Antarctic desert zone. The species composition of plants and animals is not rich, but svreridny. Life is predominantly concentrated in oases. Antar rktids. Mosses and lichens grow on these rocky surfaces and rocks, and microscopic algae and bacteria sometimes live on the surface of snow and ice. To higher plants include some types of low grasses that are found only on southern tip. Antarctic Peninsula and islands. Antarctica.

There are a lot of animals on the coast, whose life is connected with the ocean. In coastal waters, there is a lot of plankton, especially small crustaceans (krill). They feed on fish, cetaceans, pinnipeds, birds. Whales, sperm whales, killer whales live in the Anta-Arctic waters. Seals, sea leopards, elephant seals are common animals on icebergs, ice shores of the mainland. Antarctica is penguins - birds that do not drink in the summer, but swim well. In summer, gulls, petrels, cormorants, albatrosses, skuas nest on the coastal rocks - the main enemies. Penguinsgviniv.

Because the. Antarctica has a special status, then today economic importance have only gigantic reserves of fresh water. Antarctic waters are a fishing area for cetaceans, pinnipeds, marine spineless animals, and fish. However, sea wealth. Antarctica is depleted, and now many animal species are under protection. Hunting and fishing of marine animals.

B. Antarctica is missing a permanent indigenous people. international status. Antarctica is such that it does not belong to any state

. Antarctica- the southernmost continent. It has a unique geographical position: the entire territory, except for. The Antarctic Peninsula lies within. - Arctic Circle from the nearest mainland. South. America -. Antarctica is separated by a wide (more than 1000 km) strait. Drake. The shores of the mainland are washed by water. Quiet,. Atlantic and. Indian Oceans. Off the coast. Antarctica, they form a series of seas (Weddell,. Bellingshausen,. Amundsen,. Ross), shallowly protrude into the land. The coastline is almost entirely glacial cliffs.

A peculiar geographical position in cold high latitudes determines the main features of the nature of the mainland. The main feature is the presence of a continuous ice sheet

Research and development

Mankind did not know about the existence for a long time. Antarctica. In the XVII century, scientists and travelers speculated about the existence. Southern land, but could not find it. Famous navigator. J.. Ku uk during his round-the-world trip 1772-1775 crossed three times. The southern polar circle of 1774, it was up to 71 ° 10 "S, but when it came across solid ice, it turned. The results of this expedition diverted the attention of researchers from the sixth continent for some time.

At the beginning of the 19th century, the British discovered small islands south of 50 ° S. In 1819, the first Russian Antarctic expedition was organized to search. The southern mainland led it. F. Bellingsau. Uzen and. MLazarev on the ships "Vostok" and "MirnyMirny".

Among researchers. Antarctica, conquered for the first time. South Pole, were Norwegian. R. Amundsen (December 14, 1911) and Englishman. R. Scott(January 18, 1912)

For the first half of the XX century. More than 100 expeditions from different countries have visited Antarctica. A comprehensive study of the mainland began in the second half of the 20th century in 1955-1958 during the preparation and implementation. International Geophysical Year were organized major expeditions of a number of countries using modern technology 1959 a number of countries was signed. Agreement on Antarctica. Behind it, it is forbidden to use the continent for military purposes, it assumes freedom of scientific research and the exchange of scientific information.

Today. Antarctica is the continent of science and international cooperation. There are more than 40 scientific stations and bases belonging to 17 countries that carry out research in. Antarctica in 1994, at the former English and scientific station "Faraday", a group of scientists from Ukraine began work (today it is the Ukrainian station "Akademik. Vernadsky" y ").

Relief and minerals

. Relief. Antarctica double decker: above - glacial, below - indigenous (earth's crust). The ice sheet of the mainland was formed more than 20 million years ago. The average height of the subglacial surface. Antarctica is 410 m .. On the mainland there are mountains and mountains with a maximum height of more than 5000 m and huge (up to 30% of the mainland area) troughs lying in some places 2500 m below sea level. All these relief elements, with a few exceptions, are covered with an ice shell, the average thickness of which is 2200 m, and the maximum thickness is 4000-5000 m. If the ice cover is taken as the surface of the mainland, then. Antarctica is the highest continent. Lands (average height - 2040 m). Glacial shell. Antarctica has a domed surface, slightly raised in the center and lowered to the edge of the edges.

Most of the base. Antarctica lies. Antarctic Precambrian platform. The Trans-Antarctic Mountains divide the mainland into western and eastern parts. West coast. Antarctica is very cut, and the ice sheet here is less thick and broken by numerous ridges. In the Pacific part of the mainland during the period of Alpine mountain building, mountain systems arose - a continuation. Andes. South. America -. Antarctic. Andes. They contain the highest part of the mainland - the massif. Vinson (5140 m0 m).

V. East. Antarctica subglacial relief is predominantly flat. Some parts of the bedrock surface lie well below ocean level. Here the ice sheet reaches its maximum thickness. It breaks off to the sea with a steep ledge, forming ice shelves. The largest ice shelf in the world is the glacier. Ros-sa, whose width is 800 km, and the length is 1100 k0 km.

In the depths. Various minerals have been discovered in Antarctica: ores of ferrous and non-ferrous metals, coal, diamonds and others. But their extraction in the harsh conditions of the mainland is associated with great difficulties.

Climate

. Antarctica is the coldest continent on. Earth. One of the reasons for the severity of the climate of the mainland is its height. But the root cause of glaciation is not the height, but the geographical position, which determines a very small angle of incidence of the sun's rays. In the conditions of the polar night, a strong cooling of the mainland occurs. This is especially evident in inland areas, where even in summer the average daily temperatures do not rise above -30 °. C, and in winter they reach -60 ° -70 °. C at the Vostok station, the lowest temperature on Earth (-89.2 ° C) was recorded. On the coast of the mainland, temperatures are much higher: in summer - up to 0 ° C, in winter - up to -10-25 ° to -10 .. .-25 °С.

As a result of strong cooling, an area of ​​high pressure (baric maximum) is formed in the inner part of the continent, from which constant winds blow towards the ocean, especially strong on the coast in a band 600-800 km wide.

On average, about 200 mm of precipitation per year falls on the mainland, in the central parts their amount does not exceed a few tens of millimeters.

Inland waters

. Antarctica is the area of ​​greatest glaciation. Earth 99% of the mainland is covered with a thick ice sheet (the volume of ice is 26 million km3). The average thickness of the cover is 1830 m, the maximum is 4776 m. V. The Antarctic ice cover contains 87% of the earth's ice volume.

From the inner thick parts of the dome, the ice spreads to the outskirts, where its thickness

much less. In summer on the outskirts at temperatures above 0 °. C the ice is melting, but the land is not freed from the ice cover, since there is a constant influx of ice from the center

Off the coast there are small areas of land free of ice - Antarctic oases. These are rocky deserts, sometimes with lakes, their origin is not fully understood.

organic world

Features of the organic world. Antarctica is associated with a harsh climate. This is the Antarctic desert zone. The species composition of plants and animals is not rich, but svreridny. Life is predominantly concentrated in oases. Antar rktids. Mosses and lichens grow on these rocky surfaces and rocks, and microscopic algae and bacteria sometimes live on the surface of snow and ice. Higher plants include some species of low grasses that are found only at the southern tip. Antarctic Peninsula and islands. Antarctica.

There are a lot of animals on the coast, whose life is connected with the ocean. In coastal waters, there is a lot of plankton, especially small crustaceans (krill). They feed on fish, cetaceans, pinnipeds, birds. Whales, sperm whales, killer whales live in the Anta-Arctic waters. Seals, sea leopards, elephant seals are common animals on icebergs, ice shores of the mainland. Antarctica is penguins - birds that do not drink in the summer, but swim well. In summer, gulls, petrels, cormorants, albatrosses, skuas nest on the coastal rocks - the main enemies. Penguinsgviniv.

Because the. Antarctica has a special status, today only gigantic reserves of fresh water are of economic importance. Antarctic waters are a fishing area for cetaceans, pinnipeds, marine spineless animals, and fish. However, sea wealth. Antarctica is depleted, and now many animal species are under protection. Hunting and fishing of marine animals.

There is no permanent indigenous population in Antarctica. international status. Antarctica is such that it does not belong to any state

The article tells about the complexities of geological exploration. Provides information about the presence of minerals on the mainland.

Minerals of Antarctica

Antarctica is the continent that is the coldest, and at the same time full of mysteries, a place on earth.

The area is completely covered with ice crust. This is the reason why information about minerals in this part of the land is extremely scarce. Deposits are located under the thickness of snow and ice:

• coal;
• iron ore;
• precious metals;
• granite;
• crystal;
• nickel;
• titanium.

Extremely narrow information about the geology of the continent can be justified by the difficulties of carrying out exploration work.

Rice. 1. Geological exploration.

This is influenced low temperatures and the thickness of the ice sheet.

TOP 1 articlewho read along with this

Primary information on the accumulation of minerals, ore deposits and precious metals was obtained at the beginning of the last century.

It was during this period that coal seams were discovered.

Today, more than two hundred points have been found on the territory of Antarctica with deposits of iron ore and coal. But only two have the status of a deposit. Industrial production from these deposits in Antarctic conditions is recognized as unprofitable.

Copper, titanium, nickel, zirconium, chromium and cobalt are also found in Antarctica. Precious metals are expressed in gold and silver veins.

Rice. 2. Western coast of the Antarctic Peninsula.

They are on West coast peninsulas. On the shelf of the Ross Sea, it was possible to find gas manifestations that are located in wells for drilling. This is evidence that there may be natural gas, but it is difficult to determine its exact volume.

Geology of Antarctica

The geology of the mainland is such that almost its entire plane (99.7%) is hidden in ice, and its average thickness is 1720 m.

Many millions of years ago, it was so warm on the mainland that palm trees adorned its shores, and the air temperature exceeded 20 ° C.

On the eastern plain there are differences from 300 meters below sea level to 300 m above. Transantarctic Mountain peaks cross the entire continent and have 4.5 km. height. Slightly smaller is the Queen Maud Land mountain range, which has a length of 1500 km. along, and then rises up to 3000 m.

Rice. 3. Lands of Queen Maud.

The Schmidt Plain has an altitude range from -2400 to +500 m. western plain located approximately at appropriate level seas. The Gamburtsev and Vernadsky mountain range has a length of 2500 km.

The most suitable regions for mining are located on the periphery of the continent. This is explained by inner regions Antarctica has been studied to a small extent, and any kind of research is doomed to failure due to the considerable distance from the coast.

What have we learned?

From the article, we learned what minerals the land of Antarctica is rich in. We found out that on the territory of the continent there are deposits of coal, granite, precious metals, crystal, nickel, titanium, iron ore. We also learned that low temperatures make mining difficult.

Report Evaluation

average rating: 4.8. Total ratings received: 4.

What is the importance of Antarctica, many do not even know. The importance of Antarctica in the life of our planet is very great. Why is mining prohibited in Antarctica?

What is the importance of Antarctica?

Antarctica is an absolute potential resource reserve of humanity. And its significance is quite large both for science and in economic terms.

Why is mining prohibited in Antarctica? Economic activity can cause snowmelt, which will lead to a natural disaster.

Scientific significance of Antarctica

The bowels of the mainland are rich in minerals - iron ore, coal and ore. The scientists also noticed traces of nickel, copper, zinc, lead, rock crystal, molybdenum, graphite and mica. In addition, it is the largest reservoir of fresh water on Earth.

Researchers monitor meteorological and climatic processes and came to the conclusion that the coldest continent on the planet is a colossal climate-forming factor for our planet. Thanks to permafrost, you can find out what our planet was like thousands of years ago, just study the ice sheet of Antarctica. It literally freezes data on the Earth's climate and the constituent part of the atmosphere. Scientists have proved that on the mainland you can find water that was frozen during the life of Jesus Christ.

Economic importance of Antarctica

Antarctica is widely used in the tourism and fishing industries. Despite the fact that the mainland is rich in coal, it is forbidden to build a mine to extract a natural resource on it. Main scope economic activity in Antarctica - active use its biological resources. Here they are engaged in whaling, small-scale seal fishing, fishing, and krill fishing.