Sketched In Ink: Antarctica

One American explorer’s Antarctic trip showed the world how isolated and unknown the whole continent actually is. Estimations of the land mass of Antarctica are that it approaches 5,000,000 square miles, all underneath a continental ice sheet, which is the largest on Earth. Some scientist have said the ice sheet is 2000 feet thick, but others say it must be much thicker.Except for the areas of volcanic rock close to the coastal ocean and the tops of extremely high and steep mountains, most of the land is covered over with ice.

The ice travels through the valleys between mountains to the seacoast as an expanded glacier. Mountainous regions serve as a buffer for the expansive central plateau on which the South Pole is found, and which rises 8,000 to 10,000 higher than sea level. Contact this website if you require information on antarctic travel.

Geographical areas to the north lend their names to the four quadrants into which Antarctica has been divided.You would know them as the African,, Pacific and American quadrants. No one has explored the coastlines of the Pacific and African quadrants. Just a small section of the American quadrant’s coast has been explored, but the quadrant is very well known.It includes the Ross Sea area.

Queen Mary Land and the Ross Sea border the quadrant on the East and West sides, respectively.It houses South Victoria Land, Oates Land, King George V Land, Adelle Land and Wilkes Land.There is a broad sheet of ice which covers over one hundred and sixty thousand square miles with mountains rising out of the Ross Barrier and the western rim of the Ross Sea.

The barrier’s ice cliffs have formed a natural bay, called the Bay of Whales.The explorer chose to set up his base camp in this area, which is actually on the barrier. Mount Terror and Mount Erebus are two volcanoes which cover most of the Ross Island at the western end of the barrier. Spanning over Ross Sea to King Edward VII land, the barrier is over 400 miles in length. The width measured from the sea to the mountains skirting the polar route is 400 miles. Go to this site for further information on cruises to antartica.

The barrier is shelf ice, as can only be found in Antarctica.Glaciers coming from the mountains met the Ross Sea and this created the barrier.Glaciers still send ice to the sea, via channels that range in width from one to five miles.One such channel is one hundred feet long.Scientists argue about whether the barrier floats or rests on the sea floor.

Great offshoots of rock are found in King Edward VII Land, which is in the Pacific quadrant.It is edged by the Ross Sea on its westward edge. First seeing the Alexandra Mountains and the Scott Nunataks, the first explorer made a long flight from the Bay of Whales to the Pacific Quadrant. This flight also allowed him to map out fourteen new mountain tops and an island.He saw land no one else had ever spotted. Perhaps the later flights may assist scientist in establishing the coastline of the Pacific Quadrant and provide more information and knowledge regarding this territory.

The American quadrant’s Coats Land, Charcot Land and Graham Land, and Weddell sea area are very well visited by explorers. Flights were made by another explorer over Graham Land and found that it was an individual island and not connected to the continent at all. Continental division is the major geographical issue facing Antarctica today. Adding further evidence to the question is the fact that the Ross Sea in the Quadrant is sitting almost directly across from the Weddell Sea in the American Quadrant.

Scientific research and field study are two of the disciplines which are available on an unlimited basis in Antarctica. A finished map of the coast line and mountain ranges, as well as the polar plateau are the geographers goal.

Geologists would like to further study the ice-covered land.They also want to find out more about how the glaciers affect the land.