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Antarctica has no official population, language, currency or capital.

THE ARCTIC AND THE ANTARCTIC – SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES

Environment

Similarities

 Snow and ice

 Northern and Southern lights

 Freezing and icebergs

 Blizzards and snowstorms

 Both are among the most arid places on Earth

Differences

 The Antarctic is a continent and has an enormous amount of ice lying on top of a landmass; the Arctic is predominantly an ocean with a thin layer of ice floating on top.

 The Arctic has trees; the Antarctic does not.

 The Arctic Ocean (4000m deep) has a thin ice layer floating on top; the Antarctic landmass has up to 4000m ice on top.

 The Arctic has tundra; no such vegetation in the Antarctic.

 Atomic waste in the Arctic; problems of refuse disposal and potential oil exploitation in the Antarctic.

Weather

Arctic

 Coldest temperature ever recorded: −68°C.

 Coldest period of the year: when the sun reappears over the horizon.

 With fluctuating weather systems, storms rarely last longer than 2–3 days.