Antarctica: The Southernmost Continent of the Planet Earth

Antarctica is the last wilderness of our planet and the southernmost continent of the earth. This pristine and beautiful continent is the fifth largest one in the world. It is surrounded by the Southern Ocean, comprising of three Oceans: the Atlantic Ocean, the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. It is an icy continent of the earth because more than 98% of its land area is covered by ice and remaining 2% is only the exposed area occupied by rocks and lakes. Almost 70% of the worlds freshwater are accumulated within this ice-cap which may be as thick as 4 km. So it is nothing but a white landmass of the globe and may be called as the 'White Continent of the Earth'. It is the highest continent of the planet with an average elevation of about 2300 meter. It is the coldest and windiest continent, practically a desert due to very little amount of snowfall and without any rainfall, really inaccessible for all practical purposes. Antarctica is a unique place of the earth having 6 months continuous day and another 6 months continuous night in a year. It is a continent for all but for none without any permanent inhabitants and a place of peace, tranquillity and science. It controls the key of the global climate pattern. Due to thick blanket of ice covering the huge landmass of the continent and its inaccessible and inhospitable climate Antarctica has remained as an unexplored area of immense curiosity, always stimulating the adventurous instinct of mankind. Antarctica provides a unique environment to study the interactions of glaciations and climate without human interferences. The mixing process between cold and warm waters in the Southern Ocean demarcates the 'Antarctic Convergence' having the unique physical, chemical and biological characteristics. The natural resources of Antarctica are the common heritage of mankind. Becoming a more or less unexplored part of the world, Antarctica holds promising possibilities and challenges for scientific investigations and economic gains. The continent holds scientific interests for global research projects. It is nothing but a 'Mysterious Continent of the Earth' and for all practical purposes is still 'A Terra Incognita'.