Where are the Arctic and Antarctic located? And how do these areas of the Earth differ from each other? This question puzzles many people, even if they diligently studied geography at school. Our article will help answer it.

Difference between the Arctic and Antarctic

A fairly popular one goes like this: “Do polar bears eat penguins?” The brain of an adult immediately begins to build a logical chain of thoughts. Pictures from school textbooks come to mind, where both animals are depicted in the background eternal ice and harsh winter landscapes. A person reasons like this: polar bears are predators, and penguins are rather clumsy birds, easy prey. Therefore, the former should happily feast on the latter.

However, everything is not like that at all! Not everyone will guess that these animals are wildlife They cannot meet at all, since they live in completely different parts of the world. One of them is the Arctic, and the other is the Antarctic. Therefore, they can only see each other in some zoo.

Where the Arctic and Antarctica are located - this will be discussed further. What are the features of nature, climate and organic world these areas?

Where is the Arctic? Brief description of the area

What is the difference between the Arctic, Antarctica and Antarctica? Let's try to understand this geographical issue.

Where is the Arctic located on the globe? In what part of the world should you look for it?

At the very beginning, we need to remember that our planet Earth has two poles that are diametrically opposed to each other - North and South. This will help you better navigate where the Arctic is and where the Antarctic is.

So, the Arctic is the polar region of the Earth, directly adjacent to its North Pole. Geographically, it covers the ends of the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. The Arctic also includes the outskirts of Eurasia and North America, as well as numerous islands.

Sometimes this physical-geographical macroregion is limited from the south. The area of ​​the region, depending on the location of its southern borders, ranges from 21 to 27 million square kilometers.

Now you know where the Arctic is. What was it like for man to master it? And when did it start?

The history of the conquest of the Arctic and the North Pole

The Arctic has been inhabited for a long time. This is evidenced by numerous archaeological finds. Thus, man first appeared on the shores of the Arctic Ocean 30 thousand years ago. However, later he began to be pulled further north. There were also daredevils who wanted to conquer the Earth's pole.

Serious and systematic study of the area began in the second half of the 19th century. The most famous polar explorer of that time is the Norwegian Fridtjof Nansen. In particular, he went down in history by being the first to cross the ice shell of Greenland - largest island planets. This happened in 1889.

Robert Peary is another important name in history. In 1908-1909 he organized an expedition that first reached North Pole. Interestingly, the goal of this campaign was only this record. None scientific research the expedition did not take place.

7 amazing facts about the Arctic

The Arctic is an amazing region that is full of secrets, mysteries and unusual natural phenomena. Below are the most Interesting Facts about him:

  • The organic world of the Arctic, despite such a harsh climate, is quite rich. Huge expanses of ice are densely populated by polar bears, arctic foxes, lemmings, reindeer, dozens of species of birds and other animals. You can even meet an ordinary crow here!
  • Five states at once claim their rights to the Arctic, including Russia;
  • The Arctic shelf, according to rough estimates by scientists, hides over 100 billion tons of gas and oil;
  • About 50 million years ago, the Arctic climate was significantly milder. The water in the Arctic Ocean in those days warmed up in the summer to +15...18 degrees!
  • The Arctic is the region of the Earth that is most vulnerable to worldwide global warming;
  • Deserts are found not only in tropical zone, but also in the Arctic. Only here they are called Arctic;
  • Made the very first voyage in Arctic waters ancient Greek Pytheas back in the 4th century BC.

Antarctica and Antarctica - where are they?

Geographers call Antarctica the southern circumpolar region of the Earth, which is located on the opposite side of the planet from the Arctic. It includes a huge landmass - the continent of Antarctica, as well as the southern ends of the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Ocean(many foreign scientists also identify in this area the fifth ocean of the Earth - the Southern).

The northern border of Antarctica is quite arbitrary. Most often it is carried out along the edge of the zone of floating ice (between 50-55 degrees south latitude). Thus, the total area of ​​Antarctica is significantly larger than the Arctic, and is about 60 million square kilometers.

Antarctica, as mentioned above, is the sixth continent of planet Earth - the southernmost and coldest.

History of the discovery and development of Antarctica

Already in the 18th century, people assumed that there was another continent in the south of our planet. James Cook was the first to search for it in 1775. During his circumnavigation he came close to the mysterious “South Land”, discovering the South Sandwich Islands.

The discovery of the continent of Antarctica took place in 1820 during the expedition of Russian navigators F. Bellingshausen and M. P. Lazarev. After this, a series of discoveries and mapping of various seas, islands and lands in Antarctica began.

In 1911, two expeditions at once (one led by Roald Amundsen, the other by Robert Scott) set off to conquer the South Pole of the Earth. But luck smiled on only one of the groups of desperate daredevils. On December 14, 1911, Amundsen planted the Norwegian flag at the pole point. Scott's group reached the goal of the expedition 27 days later, and all its members died on the way back.

The continent of Antarctica has significant mineral resource potential. However, the countries of the world signed an agreement on the “inviolability” of the continent’s subsoil until 2048.

7 Amazing Facts About Antarctica

We bring to your attention 7 interesting facts about Antarctica and Antarctica:

  • Antarctica is the most cold continent planets. In the 80s, the lowest temperature on Earth was recorded at the Soviet polar station “Vostok” (-89 degrees);
  • Antarctica is also the highest continent on the planet (primarily due to its massive ice cap, which in some places reaches a thickness of 1-1.5 km);
  • Antarctica is the windiest and driest place on Earth (and this despite the fact that it contains up to 70% of all the world's fresh water);
  • Antarctica is the only continent without a permanent population;
  • There are 6 species of penguins in Antarctica. Among them - emperor penguins, which are distinguished by their large size;
  • Huge blocks of ice periodically break off from Antarctic ice shelves. One of these was formed in 2000 and set off to float freely. Its length reached 300 kilometers!
  • There are no time zones in Antarctica. Scientists staying here live according to the time of their states.

Arctic and Antarctic Museum

Do you know where it is? Many people are not even aware of the existence of such an institution. It turns out that such a museum exists!

It is located in the city of St. Petersburg, in the building of the former St. Nicholas Edinoverie Church (Marata Street, 24a). In 1930, the temple was closed and this unusual museum was opened within its walls. It introduces visitors to the history of the development and study of the Arctic and Antarctic.

The museum exhibits include polar explorers' equipment, unique instruments, rare photographs, models of ships and icebreakers, as well as numerous paintings by artists depicting the wild and harsh nature of the Earth's circumpolar regions.

Finally

Where are the Arctic, Antarctic and Antarctica located? Now you can easily answer this question and show the above areas on the globe. Despite the distance of thousands of kilometers between the Arctic and Antarctic, there is much in common between them. Both parts of the planet are extremely cold, there is a lot of snow, icebergs and ice, and virtually no vegetation.

June 09, 2013 First, about the similarities. The Arctic and Antarctic are regions of the Earth located around the North and South poles, respectively. The similarity in the names is explained by the fact that they are based on the ancient Greek word arktos (bear).

The northernmost part of the Earth was called the Arctic by the ancient Greeks, because they determined the direction to the north by the Polar Star, located in the constellation Ursa Minor. Antarctica is named so in contrast to the Arctic, the prefix anti in ancient Greek means “against”.

In both areas it is almost always very cold, the average annual temperature does not rise above zero. In both the Arctic and Antarctica, there is a polar night in winter, and a polar day in summer. This is where the similarities end.

The Arctic is located in the northern hemisphere of the earth, and Antarctica is in the southern hemisphere, therefore, when it is winter in the first, it is summer in the second.

The Arctic is an ice-covered ocean surrounded by land, Antarctica is an ice-covered part of the land (continent) surrounded by seas.

The territory of Antarctica is twice as large as the Arctic.

There are penguins in Antarctica, and polar bears in the Arctic.

The territory (or rather, water area) of the Arctic is divided between adjacent countries; Antarctica is considered the property of all humanity.

The Arctic and Antarctica are concepts that are often confused by schoolchildren. And older people do not see significant differences between these snow-white-ice words. But there is a difference, and it is quite significant.

Arctic- This is an area confined to the North Pole. It extends from a conventional flag driven into the pole to the outskirts of the continents bordering the Arctic Ocean - Eurasia and North America. The main territory of the Arctic is ocean waters. But it also includes Greenland and many archipelagos located in the ocean. Examples: Franz Josef Land or Nordland. The name of the Arctic is associated with the sound of the word “arktos”. From Greek it is translated as “bear”.

The nature of the Arctic was formed under the influence low temperatures. In January, up to -60°C in the center and about -2°C off the coast of the marginal seas of both continents are recorded here. In summer, temperatures can rise to + 2 °C. This temperature regime is the reason that 80% of the territory in winter and 55% in summer are covered with ice. The mass of ice affects the Earth's radiation balance and prevents it from overheating.

In the Arctic, on the coast of the continents, there is a zone of arctic deserts and on the islands - tundra. The tundra has very sparse vegetation cover. Mosses, lichens, dwarf trees, sedge and polar poppy. Such poor food can only satisfy reindeer, musk oxen, caribou, partridges, ground squirrels and lemmings. Polar wolves regulate the number of the former. Arctic foxes, stoats and snowy owls hunt rodents and birds.

The part of the Arctic that is covered with ice is devoid of vegetation. The fauna here is represented by polar bears, marine mammals and numerous birds. These are grandiose gatherings of loons and long-tailed ducks, brent geese and skuas. Bears live off fish and hunting sea ​​hares, ringed seals, lion seals and walruses.

Under the ice animal world much richer. Belugas and narwhals, fin whales and bottlenose whales, bowhead and gray whales patrol the waters, filtering or hunting for their prey. Distinctive feature The underwater fauna is gigantism, a small number of animal species with a large number of its representatives.

The Arctic has long been used as a place of work for whaling fleets and fishermen, as a training ground for nuclear tests, for occasional scientific research, as a mining site natural gas and oil lying on the shelf of the Arctic Ocean.

Antarctic — This is the continent of Antarctica and the surrounding waters of three oceans, limited by the flow of the Western winds. The center of Antarctica is the South Pole. The name appeared as a contrast to the Arctic - Anti-Arctic.

The nature of Antarctica was formed thanks to an ice sheet that covered the continent with a two-kilometer shell. Above it in July the temperature drops to −75 °C in the center and rises to + 5 °C in January. In the coldest place, at the Vostok station, -89.2°C was recorded, and the warmest is the territory of the Antarctic Peninsula. As I roll off the ice dome of the continent, piercingly cold katabatic winds break off, cooling the entire Antarctic.

In such conditions, it’s not very decent to talk about plants. Only algae settle on the snow, coloring it pink or red. On the relatively warm Antarctic Peninsula, in addition to traditional mosses and lichens, two types of flowers grow - meadow grass and colobanthus.

The entire animal world of Antarctica is tied to the ocean. Elephant seals, Kerguelen fur seals, Ross seals and leopard seals. The waters of 3 oceans are plied by killer whales and sei whales, minke whales and humpback whales. The main fish are the rhinoceros whitefish, silverfish and marbled barb. On the shores of the mainland, penguins, albatrosses, terns, cormorants and petrels occupied their ecological niches.

There is no mining in Antarctica. Scientists from a dozen countries constantly work at the stations, between which it is divided into sectors. Testing of any type of weapon is prohibited here.

Conclusions website

  1. Both territories are located in diametrically opposite parts of the planet. The Arctic is in the north, Antarctica is in the south.
  2. The basis of the Arctic is the Arctic Ocean. For Antarctica - the continent of Antarctica with adjacent waters.
  3. Antarctica is twice the size of the Arctic.
  4. It is warmer in the Arctic, colder in the Antarctic, and there is also a large range of annual temperatures.
  5. There is active mining going on in the Arctic. Antarctica has become the planet's mineral reserve, a human treasure trove left for later.
  6. Survival in both regions different representatives flora and fauna.


Parts of the earth are the knowledge that every person who graduates from school should have. However, not all adults can answer the question: how does Antarctica differ from the Arctic and Antarctica. These geographical features are located at different earth poles, so they have little in common.

What does the Arctic include?

The Arctic territory includes part of the Arctic Ocean, some of its islands, as well as some territories of Asia, North America and Europe.

The Arctic is considered cold climatic zone. The average temperature there: -34 degrees Celsius. Almost its entire territory is covered with glaciers, so the adjacent Arctic Ocean is frozen.

The area of ​​the Arctic is 21 million square kilometers. Despite the fact that almost the entire Arctic territory is covered with ice, it has many mineral resources:

  1. Diamonds.
  2. Phosphorus.
  3. Gold and silver.
  4. Carbohydrate and mineral raw materials.
  5. Chrome, etc.

Concerning flora, then due to low temperatures, there are practically no plants in the Arctic. There are no trees here at all, but bushes grow from the southern part of the area. Some of them reach more than two meters in height.

  • cereals;
  • lichens and mosses;
  • herbs;
  • ordinary and dwarf shrubs;

Despite the fact that there really are not many plants in the Arctic, the situation with animals is different. Many representatives of the fauna are not afraid to live in cold climatic conditions. What animals can you find here?

  • polar bears;
  • bighorn sheep;
  • musk oxen;
  • wild reindeer.

Despite severe frosts, it lives in the Arctic a large number of animals

The local water resources contain very valuable species fish

But do people live here? Yes, about 4 million people live in the Arctic. They live beyond the Arctic Circle. Moreover, there is even work in this cold place. Radiometeorological centers are located here, polar stations, as well as more than 10 polar international expeditions.

The Arctic territory even includes Russian cities, such as Tromsk, Murmansk, Norilsk and Salekhard.

The cold here does not disappear even in summer, so lovers of ice and frost often come here.

The Arctic has large reserves of gold

Antarctic

Antarctica is the southern polar region of the Earth, which is located in the South. This continent is washed by three oceans: the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic. The territory of Antarctica is adjacent to the islands of each of these oceans.

This term also has Greek roots. "Antarctica" is translated as "the opposite of the Arctic." The Arctic and Antarctic are really not very similar, even in climate. Antarctica is colder than the Arctic. For comparison, average temperature here: -49 degrees Celsius. This territory is considered the harshest area on the planet.

A peculiarity of the Antarctic territory is that it is almost completely covered with ice. The area of ​​the continent is 52 square kilometers.

The nature here is unique, which is why the flora and fauna of Antarctica are diverse. Not found here freshwater fish and mammals, but these areas are inhabited by seals, walruses, whales, etc. On the coast of the mainland you can find a huge number of penguins and albatrosses.

As for Antarctic vegetation, we can highlight:

Since this continent is very cold, people do not live here. However, several research stations have been built here. Scientists working at these stations live research activities.

Research groups of scientists in Antarctica

The Arctic and Antarctic differ not only in temperature, but also in the amount of ice.

Thus, based on these data, we can compare the Arctic and Antarctic, highlighting the following points:

  1. These two regions are the extreme poles of the earth, the Arctic is the North pole, and the Antarctic is the South pole.
  2. These two poles are washed by different oceans, since each of them is located at a great distance from each other.
  3. The North Pole is warmer than the South Pole, so people can live there. As for Antarctica, only scientists engaged in research activities temporarily reside there.
  4. Both the first and second regions have a unique climate, due to which they live different kinds animals. There are also plants at each pole.
  5. Part of the North Pole is divided between five states, while the territory South Pole no one has.

Before determining how the Arctic differs from Antarctica, it is necessary to provide information about the second region.

The Arctic and Antarctic are cold, dark, and we often think that these two places are almost the same. And they are completely different. The notable difference is that polar bears live only in the Arctic, and penguins live only in the Antarctic.

How does the Arctic differ from Antarctica?

The biggest Arctic Antarctic difference between the two regions is the differences sea ​​ice.

The sea ice of the Arctic and Antarctic is different due to their differences in geography. The Arctic is a semi-enclosed ocean, almost completely surrounded by land. Arctic sea ice is not as mobile as Antarctic sea ice. Although sea ice moves around the Arctic Basin, it remains in the cold Arctic waters. Icebergs are more prone to convergence - colliding with each other, accumulating in thick hummocks. These converging ice floes make the Arctic ice thicker.

The ice stays frozen longer during the summer melt—Arctic sea ice persists throughout the summer and continues to grow into the following fall. Of the 15 million square kilometers (5.8 million square miles) of sea ice that exists during winter, an average of 7 million square kilometers (2.7 million square miles) remains at the end summer season melting.

Minimum and maximum sea ice cover in the Arctic and Antarctic
This satellite sea ice concentration data shows the average minimum and maximum sea ice extent in March and September for the Arctic and Antarctic from 1979 to 2000 seasons - opposite hemispheres - Southern and Northern; The Southern reaches its summer minimum in February, and the Northern reaches its summer minimum in September. (March is shown for both hemispheres for consistency.) The dark circles in the center of the Northern Hemisphere images are areas devoid of data due to satellite coverage limitations at the North Pole.

Antarctica is surrounded by ocean. The open ocean allows sea ice formations to move freely, with high drift speeds. Antarctic sea hummocks are much less common than in the Arctic. The absence of a land border in the north allows sea ice to float freely northwards in more warm waters, where it eventually melts. As a result, almost all of the sea ice formed during the Antarctic winter melts during the summer.

In winter, up to 18 million square kilometers (6.9 million square miles) of ocean is covered with sea ice, but by late summer, only 3 million square kilometers (1.1 million square miles) of sea ice remain.

Sea ice does not accumulate in Antarctica as it does in the Arctic, nor does it have the ability to grow like Arctic sea ice. Most of the Arctic is covered with sea ice up to 2 - 3 meters thick. The Arctic regions are covered with ice 4 - 5 meters thick.

Antarctic ice is collected approximately symmetrically around the pole, forming the circle of Antarctica. In contrast, the Arctic is asymmetrical. For example, sea ice off the east coast of Canada extends south of Newfoundland to 50 degrees north latitude, and ice blocks off the east coast extend to the Russian Bohai Gulf, around 38 degrees north latitude. On the contrary, in countries Western Europe, the northern coast of Norway at 70 degrees north latitude (2,000 kilometers, or 1,243 miles, further north than Newfoundland and Japan) remains generally ice-free. Ocean currents and wind directions may explain these differences.

Arctic region north of Atlantic Ocean is open to warmer waters from the south. These warm waters could flow into the Arctic and prevent sea ice from forming in the North Atlantic. The waters off the eastern coasts of Canada and Russia are affected by cold air moving off the land from the west. The coast of Eastern Canada is also fed by currents cold water, which facilitate the growth of sea ice.

Because the Arctic Ocean is mostly covered in ice, surrounded by land, precipitation is relatively rare. Antarctica, however, is completely surrounded by ocean, so moisture is more accessible. Antarctic sea ice is typically covered in thick snow - the weight of the snow pushes the ice below sea level, causing the snow to flood salt waters ocean.

Antarctic sea ice does not reach the South Pole, expanding only in an area of ​​about 75 degrees south latitude (in the Ross and Weddell Seas), due to Antarctica. However, Arctic sea ice reaches the North Pole. Here, Arctic sea ice receives less solar energy onto its surface because the sun's rays strike at a sharper angle compared to lower latitudes.

Water Pacific Ocean and several rivers in Russia and Canada are supplied with fresh, less dense water from the Arctic Ocean. So the Arctic Ocean has a layer of fresh cold water near the surface with warm salty water below. This cold, fresh layer of water allows ice to grow in the Arctic more than in Antarctica.