Econintersect: Beneath the ice sheet that is up to two miles thick in places covering the continent of Antarctica are some unseen scenic wonders. One of these is a canyon that rivals the Grand Canyon and another valley containing the world’s largest glacier. Protruding from the ice are long mountain ranges with elevations up to 16,000 feet above sea level (Mount Vinson, 16,050 is the highest) and the earth’s southern-most volcano (12,450 foot Mount Erebus). The continent is also home to at least one very large lake about the size of Lake Ontario.
Antarctica was not always covered with ice. In fact it has not always been in its present location at the South Pole. It also has not always been an isolated continent. The image below shows a simulation of the last 150 million years. The ancient super continent Gondwana was fragmented over time by tectonic plate movement and split up to form modern continents and major islands.
The climate of Antarctica today is much different from that experienced in the past. As recently as about 48-55 million years ago palm trees grew on a sub-tropical Antarctica. This occurred even after the land mass had moved to the proximity of the South Pole. In the early Eocene epoch polar temperatures did not go below about 50 degrees Fahrenheit even in the polar winter.
The picture below shows a view in Antarctica today. The picture is of the Ross ice shelf, followed by a map of the present-day continent.
Click on picture for larger image (LiveScience.com).
Click on map for larger image (geology.com).
The map below shows the outline of the contental land mass and maximum extent winter ice from OurAmazingPlanet.com.
Below is a picture of the world’s southern-most active volcano, Mount Erebus. The massive shield volcano reaches a height of 12,450 feet and has been observed to emit smoke and flame by explorers. The mountain was first summited by crew of the Ernest Shackleford expedition in March, 1908.
Click on picture for larger image from OurAmazingPlanet.
The following short video descibes geological work on the rocks obtained from the 2% of Antarctica which reveals exposed ground.
Sources:
- What Antarctica Looked Like Before the Ice (Becky Orskin and OurAmazing Planet, Scientific American, 07 March 2013)
- Antarctica: The Frozen Continent (Dive and Discover, not dated)
- Album: Stunning Photos of Antarctic Ice (Live Science, 01 July 2007)
- Map of Antarctica and Southern Ocean (geology.com, not dated)
- How Antarctica Got So Cold (Charles Q. Choi, OurAmazingPlanet, 27 June 2011)
- Sweeping ‘Grand Canyon’ Discovered Beneath Antarctic Ice (Andrea Mustain, OurAmazingPlanet, 25 July 2012)
- What’s the World’s Largest Glacier? (Karen Rowan, Life’s Little Mysteries, 10 June 2010)
- Solving Geologic Mysteries (Live Science, not dated)
- Images: Antarctic Odyssey – The Majestic Transantarctic Mountains (OurAmazingPlanet Staff, 20 December 2011)
- Huge Antarctic Lake Reached (GEI News, 09 February 2012)
- Palm Trees in Antarctica and a Subtropical North Pole (GEI News, 06 August 2012)
