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Because only Antarctica can offer the unique scientific research sites it does, it has been set aside as a place for only science. The most striking characteristic of Antarctica proves to be the enormous ice shelf that covers over not simply nearly all of the land, but furthermore pushes out into the water as a permanent floating ice shelf which exists sometimes hundred of miles across the sea. As big as the entire state of Texas, Ross Ice Shelf is the grandest of them all. Scientists have measured the movement of the ice sheets and determined that every year, the ice mass travels 1800 feet. You can get the best antarctica cruises information by visiting this website.

Though the continent holds ninety percent of the planet’s ice, it only has two percent of all the water. The endurance of the great inland ice maintains sea level worldwide. Melting of this ice would radically alter coastlines and destroy current seaports.

The insanity of it is that if all the ice melted, sea level would rise an astounding 250 feet. That’s why it is so important for us to find out exactly what is going on with the Antarctic icecap’s health. It doesn’t really matter if the shelf is moving forward or backward. In theory, this enormous sheet of ice contains a complete record of all geophysical events from today all the way back to potentially a million years.

Layers in the ice have recorded the use of leaded gasoline, major lead smelting and even nuclear explosions. Scientists have examined how much lead has particulated on the ice since 1950. Because we have burned leaded gasoline, the decomposed lead alkyls have created an increase in the lead concentration on the surface of the ice, and these levels have been increasing steadily over the last ten years. Maybe at last we will begin to understand the serious danger posed by pollution. Go to this site for further information on adventure antarctica cruises.

DDT was not identified in the polar snows of Antarctica, even though it was found in seals, penguins, and some fish and marine life living there. Objects from space that have crashed into earth from the time of the existence of this enormous ice shelf may be dated according to their positions in the different layers of the ice. Assuming that additional research uncovers that these particles contain a revolving pattern, then predictions concerning the amount and type of space particles that vehicles will run into can be determined.

Most examples of living vegetation on Antarctica are lichens. Springtails and mites prove to be the most common land animals. A wingless fly is the biggest animal found in Antarctica; no insects can fly there. In Antarctica?s waters, you?ll find the southernmost mammals.  They are the Weddell seal and flightless penguin. This Weddell Seal is an amazing creature.  It can dive up to 1500 feet and not surface for air for over 30 minutes.

Adelie penguins make their nests on land without ice along the Antarctica coast, and they move north each winter. Using the sun and their own biological traits, they can maintain a very straight course to their next destination. It took three Adelies ten months to travel the 2400 miles back to their rookery.  Six had been transferred. They were taken to the South Pole where they were let free. After they were released, they studied their surroundings a while, fixed their gaze on the sun, and then headed off in precisely the right course for their home nests.

The existence of the greatest animal to ever exist demonstrates the life supporting capabilities of this area. Five times bigger than the largest recorded dinosaur, the almost extinct great blue whale eats one ton of shrimp a day. Numerous additional fish species dwell in the Antarctic seas than in the Arctic Sea. A stunning proof of the efficiency of the Antarctic Convergence lies in the statistic that 90 percent of all bottom dwelling Antarctic fish can not be discovered anywhere else on earth.

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