Should Antarctica Be Developed?
Introduction
The geography of Antarctica is like most countries, it has two main parts which are the east and the west. The west of Antarctica is an extended part of the Andres mountain range and this means that 99% of Antarctica is pure ice which also means that in Antarctica there is 70% of the worlds water supply. It is very mountainous with a low point of 2499m and a high point of 4897m. This very mountainous landscape is part of the reason for Antarctica being so cold. The winds and cold air hits the middle of Antarctica and as it is very high here travels down all across Antarctica so this provides a wind chill. Also as you can see from the picture at the top when the solar radiation from the sun hits the southern part of the world it has to cover a larger space than in the middle. This means the heat is spread out which means less heat for Antarctica so this is also another reason why it is so cold in Antarctica. This sun that does reach Antarctica doesn’t even make much use, you may see a picture of a sunny Antarctica which it often is but it is not hot. The Albedo is a measure of how reflective a surface is and is measured from 0 (no radiation reflect to 1 (all radiation reflect) and Antarctica has an Albedo of 0.9 al the time. This means that the radiation that does get to Antarctica is reflected, this makes it very, very cold! It also has blizzards often with Antarctic winds falling in the middle of the island and spreading out across Antarctica with great speed, it has been know to get up to 70mph. The whole island is estimated to be 7000km by 7000km giving it a total area of 49000km squared, approximately. It is such and interesting place as it is the one place on earth that humans have not touched or developed on. It has not been ruined by humans and only about 40 humans inhabit it at one given time. It is so well preserved and looked after so can still offer us so much, fossil fuels could be under it or it could even hold the key to how our world
The geography of Antarctica is like most countries, it has two main parts which are the east and the west. The west of Antarctica is an extended part of the Andres mountain range and this means that 99% of Antarctica is pure ice which also means that in Antarctica there is 70% of the worlds water supply. It is very mountainous with a low point of 2499m and a high point of 4897m. This very mountainous landscape is part of the reason for Antarctica being so cold. The winds and cold air hits the middle of Antarctica and as it is very high here travels down all across Antarctica so this provides a wind chill. Also as you can see from the picture at the top when the solar radiation from the sun hits the southern part of the world it has to cover a larger space than in the middle. This means the heat is spread out which means less heat for Antarctica so this is also another reason why it is so cold in Antarctica. This sun that does reach Antarctica doesn’t even make much use, you may see a picture of a sunny Antarctica which it often is but it is not hot. The Albedo is a measure of how reflective a surface is and is measured from 0 (no radiation reflect to 1 (all radiation reflect) and Antarctica has an Albedo of 0.9 al the time. This means that the radiation that does get to Antarctica is reflected, this makes it very, very cold! It also has blizzards often with Antarctic winds falling in the middle of the island and spreading out across Antarctica with great speed, it has been know to get up to 70mph. The whole island is estimated to be 7000km by 7000km giving it a total area of 49000km squared, approximately. It is such and interesting place as it is the one place on earth that humans have not touched or developed on. It has not been ruined by humans and only about 40 humans inhabit it at one given time. It is so well preserved and looked after so can still offer us so much, fossil fuels could be under it or it could even hold the key to how our world