The Frozen Facts
What is the coldest continent on Earth?
What is Antarctica?
What flightless bird is famous for living in Antarctica?
What is a penguin?
What do scientists often drill through the ice to collect for climate research?
A) Ice cream cones B) Ice cores C) Snowballs D) Frozen fossils
B) Ice cores
What is the name of the line that marks 66.5° south latitude?
A) The Equator B) The Tropic of Capricorn C) The Antarctic Circle D) The South Pole Line
What is the Antarctic Circle?
What season is it in Antarctica when it’s summer in the U.S.?
What is winter?
About what percent of Earth’s freshwater is found in Antarctic ice?
What is 70%?
What large marine mammal can be found lounging on Antarctic ice?
What is a seal?
Who led the first expedition to reach the South Pole in 1911?
A) Ernest Shackleton B) Robert Falcon Scott C) Roald Amundsen D) James Cook
C) Roald Amundsen
What is the highest mountain in Antarctica?
A) Mount Everest B) Mount Erebus C) Mount Vinson D) Mount Ross
C) Mount Vinson
About how many people live in Antarctica year-round?
What is zero (only scientists stay temporarily)?
What ocean surrounds Antarctica?
What is the Southern Ocean?
Which penguin species is the largest in the world?
What is the Emperor Penguin?
Which explorer reached the South Pole a month later but did not survive the return?
A) Robert Falcon Scott B) Roald Amundsen C) Edmund Hillary D) James Ross
A) Robert Falcon Scott
What is the name of the largest ice shelf in Antarctica?
A) Ross Ice Shelf B) Larsen Ice Shelf C) Weddell Ice Shelf D) Amery Ice Shelf
A) Ross Ice Shelf
How long can an Antarctic day last during summer?
What is up to 24 hours?
True or False: Antarctica is covered in ice all year round.
What is True?
What do Antarctic krill eat?
What is phytoplankton (tiny sea plants)?
What do scientists study at research stations in Antarctica?
A) Dinosaurs and fossils B) Fashion trends C) Climate, weather, and wildlife D) Ancient civilizations
C) Climate, weather, and wildlife
What are the long cracks that form in glaciers called?
A) Ridges B) Crevasses C) Canyons D) Gaps
B) Crevasses
What color are the lights that sometimes glow in the Antarctic night sky?
What are green, pink, and purple (the aurora australis)?
What is the name of the icy, windy plateau at the center of Antarctica?
What is the Antarctic Plateau?
What bird migrates from the Arctic to the Antarctic each year—the longest migration on Earth?
What is the Arctic tern?
What is the name of the treaty that protects Antarctica for peaceful scientific use?
A) The Ice Age Pact B) The Polar Agreement C) The Antarctic Treaty D) The South Pole Contract
C) The Antarctic Treaty
What continent is directly north of Antarctica across the Southern Ocean?
A) Australia B) South America C) Africa D) Asia
B) South America
What happens to the sun during the Antarctic winter?
What is it doesn’t rise for months?
Antarctica is the driest place on Earth—what type of climate does that make it?
What is a desert?
Which predator hunts seals and penguins in Antarctic waters?
What is the leopard seal? (Also probably sharks)
In what year was the Antarctic Treaty signed?
A) 1945 B) 1959 C) 1969 D) 1989
B) 1959
What is the name of the area where glaciers flow into the sea and float on water?
A) Ice ridge B) Ice field C) Ice shelf D) Ice island
C) Ice shelf
If you were to visit Antarctica, what form of transportation would most likely take you there?
What is a research ship or airplane?