• GEOGRAPHY 101
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• ITS PLACE IN HISTORY/INTERESTING FACTS
• The Sound was named for the expedition ship Antarctic, the first vessel to navigate it in 1902
• Known as “Iceberg Alley” for its stunning icebergs (as you view the iceberg photos, note that only one-eighth of an iceberg’s volume is above the sea’s surface)
• Antarctica is Earth’s southernmost continent, encapsulating the South Pole
• Antarctica is nearly twice the size of Australia and about the size of the US and Mexico combined; it is surrounded by the Southern Ocean (did you know there was such an ocean? – perhaps because its existence was not recognized until the year 2000)
• There are over 40 permanent research stations, with about 1,000 workers in the winter and 4,000 or 5,000 in the summer – there are no indigenous inhabitants or permanent residents (most people do not stay longer than two years)
• Various countries claim sovereignty in various regions, but these claims are not universally recognized. Management of the continent is carried out cooperatively, and all sovereignty claims are deferred as the Antarctic Treaty (signed in 1959, eff. 6/23/61) remains in force.
• Antarctica is the only home in the world for the Emperor penguin
• Antarctica has no government - feel free to move here if you're sick of your own! You can be King of the King Penguins (although you may have to “throw down” an emperor or two – and live in an igloo!!)
• It has no official language, no capital and no currency
• In the summer (December), there is sunlight up to 24 hours a day, as there are days of near constant darkness in the winter (June). From our present position*, the sun rises at 4:13 a.m. and sets at 9:47 p.m.! *These numbers have changed all day, depending on our then-present position. . . . (It's 10:30 p.m. and still not dark out - trippy!)
• CLIMATE
• Antarctica is the coldest place on Earth! The snow rarely melts and is eventually compressed to become the mass of glacial ice that makes up the ice sheet (aka continental glacier)
• It is difficult to access during the summer and impossible to reach during its long winters
• The ice sheet surrounding Antarctica covers almost the entire continent and contains app. 90% of the world's ice and app. 70% of its fresh water
• The lowest temperature occurring on Earth was -128.6F on 7/21/83 at Vostok Station, Antarctica
• The highest temperature recorded in Antarctica was 58.3F on 1/5/74 - a veritable "heat wave"!
• At the South Pole, the highest temperature ever recorded was 7F (while the South Pole lies on a continental land mass, i.e., Antarctica, the North Pole is located in the middle of the Arctic Ocean, covered by nothing but shifting sea ice, i.e., Santa lives on sea ice - there's no ground underneath or "continent" to the north!)
• The only current ice sheets/continental glaciers are in Antarctica and Greenland
• Antarctica is not only the coldest, but also the driest, windiest and highest continent on Earth! It’s the largest desert on Earth. It holds the record for sustained wind speeds, which can reach up to 200 mph! And its Mount Vinson reaches 16,050 feet.
• THOUGHTS/IMPRESSIONS
• We have gone to the end of the world! See South America on a map? Look down from there . . . brrrrrrr!
• Today (1/30/12) is day 1 of 3 of the “Antarctic Experience”. If we’d sailed directly from the Falklands to our next port of Ushuaia, Argentina, we would likely be there already. Instead, we headed even farther south to the frigid waters of Antarctica. Some people regard this as a cruise highlight. Today, we cruise the Antarctic Sound. The highlight was our passage through Hope Bay to Esperanza Station and the penguin colony there.
• Tomorrow (1/31), we are supposed to cruise through the South Shetland Islands. On Wed., 2/1/12, we cruise Wilhelm Archipelago. We’ll then cross the roughest waters in the world (over Drake Passage) and through Cape Horn on 2/2 before arriving in Ushuaia on 2/3. We don’t stop anywhere – “just cruising through”.
• HAL gave us an “Antarctica Log Book”, a collection of images and historical information describing “this frozen, dry, windswept land”.
• So this does not become the “Titanic Experience”, we have an “Ice Pilot” on board to assist the Captain.
• The temperature is a brisk 30F, with 33-knot winds that create an “apparent wind” on board of 46+ knots. Our sodas (out on the balcony) are nice and cold now! It was snowing, cloudy/overcast and windy all morning, but the clouds finally lifted and the stunning bergs came into view! While most passengers were smart enough to stay inside, Bill and I bundled up and headed out to see and view the bergs (many times). Some of the best views were right out of our own verandah, or off the back of the ship (very near our room). Sitting here at my computer, I look out the window to see a glacier and numerous icebergs passing by . . . it’s quite a sight! It’s surprising how close we are to them, too! Stunning as the pictures may be, I doubt one could truly appreciate this place without actually being here . . . (dress warmly)!
• Check out the small settlement (in red buildings) and the scores of penguins everywhere – in the attached photos!
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