ABSTRACT
Weather-wise, Antarctica is the coldest, windiest, and driest continent on planet Earth. It is mainly due to a combination of geographical, physical, and thermodynamic factors involving rather steep orographic terrain, less solar energy received all through the year, and high albedo due to persistent snow cover. Though these factors are applicable more or less the same to both the North and South Poles of the Earth, what makes Antarctica, the central region of the South Pole, even colder than its northern counterpart, the Arctic, is partly due to the massive and thick ice sheet that covers about 98% of the continent. What makes Antarctica the windiest place on Earth’s surface is its peculiar topography. It has the highest average elevation of any continent (4,892 meters, or 8,200 feet) surrounded by water (which holds its temperature longer than land). The steep temperature gradient thus created causes katabatic solid winds. As a result of these meteorological factors, the average temperature experienced over the coastal belt of Antarctica is around –10°C (14°F) and the temperature in its inland region is around −55°C (−67°F).
