The Polar Ice Caps, The Wondrous Workings of Planet Earth

The North and South Poles are the farthest points from Earth’s equator and some of the coldest places on the planet. Both experience perpetual darkness for half the year, and most of the sunlight that hits the polar ice caps is reflected back into space by the brilliant white of the snow. Despite these extreme conditions, the Arctic seas and the Antarctic tundra are home to many species of hardy wildlife.

The Antarctic South Pole is on a mountainous continent surrounded by ocean, while the Arctic North Pole is a frozen ocean surrounded by land. This makes temperatures in the South Pole much colder than those in the North Pole. The ocean water that makes up much of the Artic is warmer than its frozen ice cap and affects the Arctic’s temperature. Meanwhile, the land continent of Antarctica is over a mile and a half above sea level. The higher the elevation, the colder the air gets, and Antarctica’s elevation makes it the coldest place on earth.

Global warming is negatively impacting both of the poles. As oceans warm, the northern ice caps shrink more each year and the ice shelves of the Southern ice cap collapse. With smaller ice caps, less sunlight is reflected back into space, meaning even more of the ocean is exposed to—and absorbs—even more sunlight, contributing to the further warming of the ocean. The fresh water that was previously locked in large polar glaciers is melting into the ocean, causing global sea levels to rise. Scientists predict that this will affect global weather patterns and currents of the entire ocean. It is our job to learn more about these changes in our world and work toward preserving the ecosystems of Earth.

In the northernmost part of the globe is the Arctic Circle. Although you can drive a truck over the northern ice cap, it is not land. It is actually thick frozen sea ice covered in blinding white snow. This white is so bright that it reflects 80 percent of the sunlight back into space. A lot of this sea ice stays frozen all year, but during the summer some of it melts away, revealing the Northwest Passage. This sea route is one of the most sought-after trading routes in the world, and disputes over rights to use it have created tensions between many countries.

Winters in the Arctic Circle can get as cold as -58°F/-50°C (brrr!), but despite the cold climate, the Arctic seas and the landmasses that surround it are teeming with life. The polar bear is perhaps the most iconic animal of the Arctic, living and hunting on the sea ice. But this apex predator is just the top of the food chain. From seabirds to sea lions, there is an abundance of animal life, like Arctic hares, puffins, and orca whales. Many use camouflage as a method for survival, like the Arctic fox, which is brown in the summer and grows a white coat in the winter to hide in the snow. Meanwhile, seals turn from white to dark brown as they mature so they can better hide in the dark ocean waters.

During the warm seasons, animals from all over the world migrate to the Arctic to feast on algae and phytoplankton blooms. From food to climate control, the Arctic Circle is one of the most important resources for preserving life on the entire planet.

BIGGEST BENEFITS

The Arctic Circle is abundant in marine life. All of that fish provides food not just for other animals but for people as well. Fish caught in the Arctic seas are eaten all over the world. The Arctic is also rich in minerals—beneath the ocean floor and surrounding frozen land is one of the world’s largest oil fields and 30 percent of the earth’s total undiscovered natural gas. But the greatest benefit is likely the way the bright snow reflects sunlight, cooling the entire earth and regulating the global climate.

The measurement of how much sunlight is reflected by the snow is called “albedo.” This reflected warmth is so strong that it often looks like a heat mirage.

Gray whales migrate from the warm waters of Mexico to the Arctic Ocean to feast on fish during the warm season’s algae bloom.

The Northern Lights in the Arctic (also called the aurora borealis) are caused by solar winds interacting with the North Pole’s magnetic field.

Polar bears actually have black skin and transparent fur. Their hollow guard hairs reflect light and make them look as white as the snow around them.

Because of the tilt of the earth’s axis, in the winter the Arctic experiences days of 24-hour darkness (called “polar nights”) and days of 24-hour sunlight in the summer (called “polar days” or “the midnight sun”).

GREATEST THREAT

Global warming is one of the greatest threats to our world, and the effects can be seen most dramatically in the Arctic. The amount of sea ice that previously stayed frozen all year is shrinking. As global temperatures rise, fresh water that has been locked in glaciers for centuries is now melting into the ocean. This causes sea levels to rise, impacting islands and coastal cities. As the ice caps shrink, the planet will only get hotter. We need to act now to stop harmful CO2 emissions, or one day we may well feel just like a polar bear floating on a shrinking iceberg.

Ecosystem of the Antarctic Tundra

When you think of a desert, you probably imagine a hot, sandy place with a dry climate. But the driest place on Earth also happens to be the coldest: the landmass of Antarctica, around the earth’s South Pole. This barren landscape has been described as the end of the world, and while it’s not a place that’s hospitable to humans, its coast is teeming with life that depends on the changing of the seasons and the surrounding icy seas.

Over 170 million years ago, Antarctica was part of the supercontinent Gondwana, where dinosaurs roamed. Over millions of years Antarctica broke off, moving towards the pole and becoming the frozen continent we know today. Scientists recently discovered ancient tree fossils in Antarctica, meaning that a million years ago, Antarctica had forests whose trees evolved to withstand six-month periods of almost complete darkness. Fossils and deep underground water reservoirs give us glimpses of what ancient Antarctica looked like.

Today, Antarctica has become synonymous with penguins, from the stout macaroni penguin with its blond, bushy eyebrows to the large and noble emperor penguin. These distinctive flightless birds crowd the coastal regions, but they are only part of Antarctica’s complex food web. Just as in the Arctic, frozen algae is the base of the Antarctica’s food chain. In the summer, the ice melts and the phytoplankton blooms, which feeds massive amounts of krill. This attracts a migration of seabirds, seals, and whales, turning the Antarctic seas into a feeding frenzy of life.

Antarctica is owned by no country and has no permanent human residents, only tourists and research scientists who live there for limited periods. It is the world’s most pristine wilderness; the first person to travel to the South Pole, Roald Amundsen, described the land as “a fairytale.”

BIGGEST BENEFITS

The North and South Pole have a lot in common. Like the Arctic’s algae bloom, Antarctica’s provides the base of the food web for animals all over the ocean. And like the Arctic, its massive white surface reflects sunlight and heat back into space, helping to cool and regulate the planet’s climate.

The McMurdo research station is the closest thing to an Antarctic town. Only about 4,000 scientists live in Antarctica during the summer and that number drops to about 1,000 in the winter.

In 1959, the Antarctic Treaty was signed, which states that the South Pole will be used only for peace and science, and that all discoveries will be shared freely. Fifty-three countries are now a part of the treaty.

Many mosses grow on rocks throughout Antarctica, but only three types of flowering plants can survive on the entire continent: Antarctic pearlwort, Antarctic hair grass, and annual bluegrass.

There are an estimated over six million Adélie penguins living in East Antarctica.

Since 1950, the Antarctic Peninsula has warmed by half a degree Celsius every ten years. This is much more rapid than the global average.

GREATEST THREAT

Even though no humans live full-time in Antarctica, people still have an impact on its ecosystems. Global warming is melting cracks in the Antarctic ice shelf; in 2017, a portion the size of Delaware broke away, forming one of the largest icebergs ever recorded; it is now floating and melting in the ocean. When ice breaks away, it makes the entire ice shelf unstable. If all of Antarctica’s ice were to melt, scientists estimate that the seas would rise by up to 200 feet, flooding coasts all over the world.