Antarctica

Question 1

Why is deep ice formed in Antarctica

Answer 1

Accumulation of snow over a very long period of time

Question 2

What is the makeup of snow in Antarctica?

Answer 2

98% air and 2% ice particles

Question 3

How is snow turned into ice?

Answer 3

Layers over layers compact it and squeezes out the air, 50-50 air-ice is called firm
This continues until it is 90% ice and then it is ice

Question 4

Where are research centres located in Antarctica?

Answer 4

Along the east coast and on the Antarctic peninsula

Question 5

What is the largest active volcano on Antarctica?

Answer 5

Mt.Erebus in the south of Antarctica

Question 6

Name the biggest mountain in Antarctica?

Answer 6

Vinson Massif

Question 7

What is the name of the mountain range which stretches from the north to the south of Antarctica?

Answer 7

Transantarctic mountains

Question 8

Where are the volcanoes on Antarctica typically found?

Answer 8

West coast and east side of the Ross ice shelf

Question 9

Where is the Ross Ice shell located?

Answer 9

South of Antarctica

Question 10

How much snow falls every year in Antarctica and doesn’t melt?

Answer 10

1000 mm of snow

Question 11

What is it called when large blocks of ice break away into the sea to form icebergs?

Answer 11

Calving

Question 12

What heats the atmosphere?

Answer 12

Earth

Question 13

What does the Earth do with the suns energy?

Answer 13

It absorbs it

Question 14

What form of light hits the Earth from the Sun?

Answer 14

Ultraviolet light

Question 15

What does the Earth convert the UV light to?

Answer 15

Infrared

Question 16

What does the amount of the Suns energy depend on?

Answer 16

The latitude

Question 17

What does the infrared energy do once radiated from the earth?

Answer 17

Heat the atmosphere and the clouds hold some of energy further leading to the green house effect

Question 18

How does the Suns energy arrive at the Earth?

Answer 18

Parallel lines as it is so far away

Question 19

Why is the Antarctic cold relating to the spread of energy?

Answer 19

Incoming energy from the Sun is spread out as it is in parallel lines-less to radiate and heat atmosphere so colder

Question 20

Why is it colder in Antarctica in the winter?

Answer 20

As the sun doesn’t rise for 6 months so there is no insolation during winter and atmosphere gets colder and colder

Question 21

Roughly how big is Antarctica? And how many people live there?

Answer 21

14,000,000km2

1000 in winter,5000 in summer

Question 22

Why is Krill important in Antarctica?

Answer 22

As so many creatures eat it, if it disappeared a lot of animals would have no food source and the food web would break down

Question 23

Why is Antarctica a fragile environment?

Answer 23

Very cold -89.2C to -12.2C, cold desert
Know permanent inhabitants ,some animal life
Some areas have no ice cover, large areas covered in ice up to 4km deep
Not owned by any country/countries

Question 24

When did whaling begin in Antarctica?

Answer 24

18th Century

Question 25

Why did people want to kill whales?

Answer 25

For its meat, oil and bones

Question 26

What was introduced in 1868? What was it claiming to be?

Answer 26

Explosive harpoon,meant to be a more humane option than the traditional harpoon

Question 27

In what time period were whales almost wiped out?

Answer 27

1904-1965

Question 28

Who stepped in to put a stop to whaling?

Answer 28

The International Whaling Committee

Question 29

When did whaling become illegal worldwide?

Answer 29

1985

Question 30

What are the 3 separate groups of tourism to Antarctica?

Answer 30

Camping trips taken by journalists,naturalists and photographers Ship-board visits by cruise boats which are not big but can only visit a site very 3 days Over flights to show people the landscape and mountains

Question 31

Why were over-flights of Antarctica briefly banned?

Answer 31

As a New Zealand flight (DC10) crashed into Mount.Erebus in 1979

Question 32

How can we reduce the impact of tourism in Antarctica?

Answer 32

Stop water pollution by ships and litter by tourists Restrict planes to reduce pollution and so they do not disturb the animals Restrict the amount of people which visit during the breeding time,and tell people to keep their distance

Question 33

Define a fragile environment

Answer 33

An environment that can be easily damaged by natural or human induced causes and is very difficult to recover in a reasonable time scale

Question 34

Define sustainable

Answer 34

Using resources in such a way that the ability of future generations to use them is not compromised E.g fishing quota/net mesh sizes, plant 3 trees for every 1 cut down