Changes

The Antarctic climate offers a formidable challenge to those who venture there in quest of scientific knowledge. It is the coldest, driest, highest (on average) and windiest continent on Earth. Absolute humidity is lower than on the Sahara. Annual snowfall in much of the interior is less than two inches. Winds that flow down the surface of the ice sheet toward the coast (katabatic winds) commonly reach speeds of 80 miles per hour, and maximum measured wind speeds have exceeded 180 miles per hour. Changes in the weather are dramatic: winds shift from calm to full-gale in a brief period of time. A drop of 65°F was once recorded in 12 minutes. Earth's lowest surface temperature (-126.9°F) was recorded at Russia's Vostok Station in the interior of Antarctica. Coastal locations in summer occasionally rise above the freezing point.

The Antarctic climate offers a formidable challenge to those who venture there in quest of scientific knowledge. It is the coldest, driest, highest (on average) and windiest continent on Earth. Absolute humidity is lower than on the Sahara. Annual snowfall in much of the interior is less than two inches. Winds that flow down the surface of the ice sheet toward the coast (katabatic winds) commonly reach speeds of 80 miles per hour, and maximum measured wind speeds have exceeded 180 miles per hour. Changes in the weather are dramatic: winds shift from calm to full-gale in a brief period of time. A drop of 65°F was once recorded in 12 minutes. Earth's lowest surface temperature (-126.9°F) was recorded at Russia's Vostok Station in the interior of Antarctica. Coastal locations in summer occasionally rise above the freezing point.

At the South Pole, the nights are six months long, extending from sunset on March 21 to sunrise on September 21. A lake (Lake Vostok) buried 11,000 ft. under the ice is the size of North America's Lake Huron.

A lake (Lake Vostok) buried 11,000 ft. under the ice is the size of North America's Lake Huron.

Offshore cyclones occur with little warning. Winds typically reach hurricane strength within an hour and persist for several days. A concentration of storm formation and/or intensification occurs at approximately 50°S latitude and is associated with some of the most violent seas in the world ("the roaring forties"). The stretch of ocean between Antarctica and the tip of South America is considered the most hostile in the world and has claimed numerous ships over the centuries.

Offshore cyclones occur with little warning. Winds typically reach hurricane strength within an hour and persist for several days. A concentration of storm formation and/or intensification occurs at approximately 50°S latitude and is associated with some of the most violent seas in the world ("the roaring forties"). The stretch of ocean between Antarctica and the tip of South America is considered the most hostile in the world and has claimed numerous ships over the centuries.