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Antarctic Circle
The Antarctic (or Antarctica) Circle is one of the five major circles or parallels of latitude that mark maps of the Earth.
Show on the image above with a dashed red line, this parallel of latitude sits at approximately 66.33° south of the Equator. It marks the northern limit of the area within which, for one day or more each year, the sun does not set or rise.
The length of continuous day or night increases southward from the Antarctic Circle, mounting to six months at the South Pole.
Links  Antarctica Ice Shelves
here!
Antarctica Penquins
here!
Antarctica Project
here!
Antarctica Seals
here!
Arctic Circle page
here!
Glaciers
here!
South Pole
virtual tour
Travel to Antarctica
here!
Maps Antarctica/Polar Regions at U.T. here!
Antarctica Outline Map here!
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Antarctica Details
Size: 13,209,000 sq km, 5,100,021 sq miles
(varies due to changing ice shelves)
Percent of Earth's Land: 8.9%
Status Antarctica, almost 98% solid ice, was finally considered a continent in 1840, and not just a group of isolated islands. Today it has active territorial claims submitted by Argentina, Australia, Chile, France, New Zealand, Norway and the United Kingdom. (Many of these claims are not recognized by some countries
and remain in a constant disputed status) Capital City none
Climate
Antarctica is the coldest and windiest spot on the planet. In fact, the lowest temperature ever recorded on Earth was recorded in Antarctica (-129.3ºF) and the mean winter temperatures range from -40º to -94ºF. Winds are commonly measured at up to 200 miles per hour.
Current Weather at the South Pole.
 Highest Point Vinson Massif at 16,066 ft. (4,897 m)
map here!
Lowest Point Bentley Subglacial Trench, -2,555 m)
Latitude/Longitude 90° S, 0.00° E
Official Language none
Official Currency none
Population Officially none, but governmental research stations are populated with small groups of scientists at all times. In addition, in 2003, over 13,000 tourists visited the continent. What Time Is It? A tricky question in a place where all time zones converge. So everyone in Antarctica officially goes by New Zealand time, shown below:
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