7th Social Geography – CHAPTER 27
ANTARCTICA
Exercises
I Fill in the blanks with a suitable word:
1 The landmass nearest to the continent of Antarctica is
Capehorn
2 The one who discovered the continent of Antarctica
was Charles Wills.
3 The person who discovered the South Pole was Shackleton of England.
4 The first research station established by the Indian
team in Antarctica was ‘Dakshina Gangotri.
II Answer the following questions.
1. Mention the location and extent of Antarctica.
Answer: The Location and extent of Antarctica is as follows.
Location : Antarctica is the continent which surrounds the South Pole. Most of the continent lies within the Antarctic Circle or 66030′ South latitude. The uniqueness of the continent is that it is positioned opposite to the Arctic Ocean in the North Pole.
Extent : Antarctica is the fifth largest continent with a total area of 14.2 million km2. It is larger than India and China and is one and a half times larger in area than the USA.
2. Explain the physical settings of Antarctica.
Answer: The continent of Antarctica is surrounded by water bodies. It is often called the Southern Ocean or Antarctic Ocean. It is not a separate water body. Instead, it is formed by the meeting of the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. Capehorn, the souther most part of
Latin America, is the nearest land to this continent. It is at a distance of 990 km. Antarctica is bound by the Indian Ocean on the East, the Pacific Ocean on the West and the Atlantic ocean on the Northwest.
3. Mention the important mountains and peaks of Antarctica.
Answer: Antarctica has the relief features such as mountains, plateaus, valleys and gorges. Antarctica is the highest continent at an average elevation of 2300 m above sea level. The trans-Antarctic mountain range divides Antarctica into two major physical divisions – (1) East Antarctica and (2) West Antarctica.
i) East Antarctica faces the South Atlantic Ocean
and the Indian ocean; it covers more than half of the continent and is called the greater Antarctica. Along its coast, there are mountains, valleys and glaciers. The central part of the region is a plateau where the South Pole is located.
ii) West Antarctica is towards the Pacific Ocean. Much of its area lies below sea level. The peninsular region of Antarctica is a mountainous ‘S’ shaped fringe of land that points towards South America.
There are several islands near it. In addition, it also has mountain peaks and volcanoes. Vinson Massif, the highest peak in Antarctica (5140 m) is located in the Ellsworth Mountains. Mt. Erebus, Antarctica’s most active volcano is on Ross Island. Prince Charles mountains is another prominent mountain group. Two large gulfs cut into Antarctica on the opposite ends of the trans antarctic mountain range, namely the Ross Sea and the Weddell Sea.
4. Name the plants and animals of Antarctica.
Answer: Very limited plant life can survive in Antarctica. It mainly consists of mosses, algae and lichens growing on the exposed part of rocks. Only very few animals which can survive the adverse climate, live in Antarctica. But a variety of animal life can be found in the surrounding water bodies. For example, the krills, penguins, whales, seals and a variety of seabirds. The krill, a small fish resembling shrimps and prawns, is found in abundance. Adelie, Emperor and Chinstrap are the chief species of penguins found here.
5. Mention the Indian Research Centres in Antarctica.
Answer: The Indian Research Centres in Antarctica are,
- ‘Dakshina Gangotri’
- ‘Maithri’
- ‘Bharathi’
The first research centre established by the Indian scientists was called ‘Dakshina Gangotri’. It was built in 1983 and was named in 1989. Presently, there are no men here and it is only used for storage purposes. ‘Maithri’ is the second research station. It was set up on the Schirmacher Oasis (1988-89). It is all-weather proof and can accommodate 26 people. 255m from this station. India has built a freshwater lake known as ‘Priyadarshini’. The Maithri Research Centre conducts research on Geology, Geography and Medicine.
India has proposed to build another research center ‘Bharathi’. It intends to do research on Oceanography. Necessary survey has already been completed.
