Table of Contents
What is the average wind speed in Antarctica?
about 12 miles per hour
It’s not unusual to see speeds up to 100 miles per hour, while the highest wind speed ever recorded on the continent was 200 miles per hour. Interestingly, the actual South Pole’s high elevation means it doesn’t get particularly high winds itself—the average wind speed there is only about 12 miles per hour.
What is the windiest place in Antarctica?
the coldest (–91°C in 1997) the driest (less than the equivalent of 5cm of rain a year) the windiest (wind speed of 327 km per hour in 1972) the highest (average height above sea level of 2500m)…Why is Antarctica so Windy?
| aiti | ice |
|---|---|
| toka ia | frozen |
| Antarctica | Antarctica |
| tonga | southern |
| anu / makariri | cold |
Does Antarctica get dark?
How much daylight is there in Antarctica during summer and winter? As you move closer to the poles, the periods of winter darkness and summer daylight increase. 24-hour daylight occurs for several months over summer, while in winter there is complete darkness for several months.
What are katabatic winds in Antarctica?
Antarctic Katabatic Winds (2005) Simply put, katabatic wind is cold dense air that pours down the ice slope to the sea, becoming denser and picking up speed as it goes. Antarctica produces the strongest and most enduring katabatic winds as it is the highest and coldest continent.
What makes Antarctica extreme?
Antarctica can be called a desert because of its low levels of precipitation, which is mainly snow. Antarctica has the coldest land temperature recorded on the Earth, -89.2°C. The average annual temperature is around -50°C. It is a challenging environment and no one lives there permanently.
Can you legally live in Antarctica?
No-one lives in Antarctica indefinitely in the way that they do in the rest of the world. It has no commercial industries, no towns or cities, no permanent residents. The only “settlements” with longer term residents (who stay for some months or a year, maybe two) are scientific bases.
What was the highest wind speed ever recorded in Antarctica?
The highest wind speeds recorded in Antarctica were at Dumont d’Urville station in July 1972: 327km/h (199 mph). Because the South Pole is well inland and on a flat area of the plateau, the katabatic winds are relatively mild. The highest recorded wind at the South Pole was only 50 knots (58 mph).
How is the wind at the South Pole?
Because the South Pole is well inland and on a flat area of the plateau, the katabatic winds are relatively mild. The highest recorded wind at the South Pole was only 50 knots (58 mph). Halo around the moon, which is blocked by a flag at the South Pole.
Why is Antarctica the coldest place on Earth?
The snow reflects the sun’s solar radiation, and this combined with high altitude (much of the continent is over 9,800 feet above sea level) makes the interior of Antarctica the coldest place on Earth. The lowest recorded Antarctic temperature was taken at Vostok Station in July 1983: -89.2°C (-128.6°F).
What was the warmest temperature ever recorded at the South Pole?
The warmest temperature ever recorded at the South Pole, recorded at the height of the austral summer, December 25, 2011, was still well below freezing: -12.3°C (+9.9°F). The strong winds of Antarctica are called katabatics, formed by cold, dense air flowing out from the polar plateau of the interior down the steep vertical drops along the coast.