Antarctica is the coldest continent on Earth. On average, Antarctica is colder than the Arctic. The coldest temperature on Earth was also recorded in Antarctica. The Antarctic ice sheet is also much bigger and thicker than the ice in the Arctic. Here are the reasons why Antarctica is colder than the Arctic.
Both Antarctica and the Arctic are located in the Earth’s poles (the Arctic in the North and Antarctica in the south), so they receive less sunlight than the other places in the world. They are actually the two coldest places on earth.
Even during summers, the Sun is always low on the horizon. During winters, the Sun stays below the horizon (hence 6 months-long winters) in the Earth’s poles.
But, Antarctica is much colder than the Arctic, and there are several reasons for this.
The reasons why Antarctica is colder than the Arctic
1. The Arctic is ocean surrounded by land. The Antarctic is land surrounded by ocean.
There’s no land in the north pole. It’s just an ice sheet over the ocean. The ocean under the Arctic ice is quite cold but it is still warmer than the ice. So the ocean warms the air a bit – the Arctic Ocean acts as an effective heat reservoir.
By contrast, Antarctica is a continent. There’s no ocean beneath it.
2. Antarctica is high
Antarctica is high. In fact, with an average elevation of 7,545 feet (about 2,300 meters), it has the highest average elevation of all the continents in the world. The elevation of Antarctica at the South Pole is 9,300 feet! (2,834 meters).
The higher you go, the colder it gets.
3. Antarctica has more ice
With an average thickness of 2.16 kilometers (about 7,000 feet!), it’s that enormous ice sheet that helps to make Antarctica the highest elevation continent on Earth. Antarctic ice sheet contains 90 percent of all the world’s ice and 70 percent of all the world’s freshwater.
Plus, Antarctica is almost twice the size of Australia, it has an area of 14,200,000 km2 (5,500,000 sq mi). So this huge ice sheet reflects the sunlight and makes the continent even colder.
4. Antarctica is windier
Antarctica is the windiest continent on Earth. The winds can reach speeds of 320 kilometers per hour (200 mph) in Antarctica, faster than a Category 5 hurricane! So, windchill makes apparent temperature even colder in Antarctica.
How cold are Antarctic and Arctic?
The coldest temperature ever recorded on Earth was in Antarctica, near Russia’s Vostok Station at -93.3°C (-135.9°F). But, according to satellite data, several spots on the East Antarctic Plateau reach temperatures of nearly -100 °C (-148 °F) during the Antarctic winter.
By contrast, the lowest temperature in the Northern Hemisphere was recorded on December 22, 1991, at Klinck Automated Weather Station (AWS), Greenland (72°18’N, 40°28’W, elevation: 3, 216 meters or 10551 feet). The recorded temperature was -69.6°C (-93.3°F).
On average, Antarctica is still much colder than the Arctic. The average winter temperature on the Arctic (in the North Pole) is about -40°C (-40°F), while the average winter temperature in Antarctica is -60°C (-76°F) in the South Pole!
Antarctic summers are colder too: on average, Antarctic summer is -18°F (-28.2°C) in the South pole, while Arctic Summer is 32°F (0°C) in the North Pole.
Related: Interesting Antarctica facts
Sources
- Why is Antarctica colder than the Arctic? on the Aurora Expeditions website
- Which pole is colder? on the NASA Climate Kids website
- “Northern Hemisphere: Lowest Temperature” on the Arizona State University website
- Why is the South Pole colder than the North Pole? on the Scientific American website
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