The Antarctic

Question 1

Name 4 facts about Antarctica

Answer 1

1. It is the remotest, coldest windiest and least populated continent
2. The average temperature is -49 degrees centigrade
3. Its land area is 7 million km^2 making it the second smallest continent behind Australia

Question 2

Antarctica is dominated by a giant ice sheet, give some facts about it

Answer 2

1. It has an average thickness of 2000m
2. Only 0.4% of Antarctica isn’t covered by ice
3. It stores 70% of the earth’s fresh water

Question 3

Is Antarctica a desert?

Answer 3

Yes, it is one of the driest places on Earth- its average annual precipitation is below that of many of the world’s deserts

Question 4

Name 3 species which live in Antarctica

Answer 4

Penguins, seals and many forms of algae

Question 5

Give 3 reasons why Antarctica should be protected

Answer 5

1. Its aesthetic value
2. Its wildlife is unique and is a pure natural system
3. There’s a need to preserve the gene pool to ensure genetic diversity is maintained

Question 6

Why is it difficult to enforce any code of conduct on Antarctica?

Answer 6

No country has sovereignty over it

Question 7

What is special about the Antarctic environment?

Answer 7

It is extremely fragile, the cold means it is slow o recover, footprints on mosses can remain for decades. It is easy to disrupt any part of it