Maud Land), and UK; Brazil has noted possible Latin claims; the US and USSR do not recognize the territorial claims of other nations and have made no claims themselves (but reserve the right to do so); no formal claims have been made in the sector between 90o west and 150o west
_#_Climate: severe low temperatures vary with latitude, elevation, and distance from the ocean; East Antarctica colder than West Antarctica because of its higher elevation; Antarctic Peninsula has most moderate climate; warmest temperatures occur in January along the coast and average slightly below freezing
_#_Terrain: about 98% thick continental ice sheet, with average elevations between 2,000 and 4,000 meters; mountain ranges up to 4,897 meters high; ice-free coastal areas include parts of southern Victoria Land, Wilkes Land, the Antarctic Peninsula area, and Ross Island on McMurdo Sound; glaciers form ice shelves along about half of coastline and floating ice shelves constitute 11% of the area of the continent
_#_Natural resources: none presently exploited; coal and iron ore; chromium, copper, gold, nickel, platinum, and hydrocarbons have been found in small uncommercial quantities
_#_Land use: arable land 0%; permanent crops 0%; pastures 0%; meadows and forest and woodland 0%; other 100% (ice 98%, barren rock 2%)
_#_Environment: mostly uninhabitable; katabatic (gravity) winds blow coastward from the high interior; frequent blizzards form near the foot of the plateau; cyclonic storms form over the ocean and move clockwise around the coast, as does a circumpolar ocean current; during summer more solar radiation reaches the surface at the South Pole than is received at the Equator in an equivalent period; in April 1991 it was reported that the ozone shield, which protects the Earth's surface from harmful ultraviolet radiation, had dwindled to its lowest level ever over Antarctica; subject to active volcanism (Deception Island and isolated areas of West Antarctica); other seismic activity rare and weak
_#_Note: the coldest, windiest, highest, and driest continent
_*People #_Population: no indigenous inhabitants; staffing of research stations varies seasonally;
Summer (January) population—4,120; Argentina 207, Australia 268,
Belgium 13, Brazil 80, Chile 256, China NA, Ecuador NA, Finland 16,
France 78, Germany 32, Greenpeace 12, India 60, Italy 210, Japan 59,
South Korea 14, Netherlands 10, NZ 264, Norway 23, Peru 39, Poland NA,
South Africa 79, Spain 43, Sweden 10, UK 116, Uruguay NA, US 1,666,
USSR 565 (1989–90);
Winter (July) population—1,066 total; Argentina 150, Australia
71, Brazil 12, Chile 73, China NA, France 33, Germany 19, Greenpeace 5,
India 21, Japan 38, South Korea 14, NZ 11, Poland NA, South Africa 12,
UK 69, Uruguay NA, US 225, USSR 313 (1989–90);
Year-round stations—42 total; Argentina 6, Australia 3, Brazil 1,
Chile 3, China 2, France 1, Germany 2, Greenpeace 1, India 2, Japan 2,
South Korea 1, NZ 1, Poland 1, South Africa 1, UK 5, Uruguay 1, US 3,
USSR 6 (1990–91);
Summer only stations—34 total; Argentina 1, Australia 3, Chile 5,
Finland 1, Germany 4, India 1, Italy 1, Japan 1, NZ 2, Norway 1,
Peru 1, South Africa 1, Spain 1, Sweden 2, UK 1, US 3, USSR 5 (1989–90)
_*Government #_Long-form name: none
_#_Type: The Antarctic Treaty, signed on 1 December 1959 and entered into force on 23 June 1961, established for at least 30 years a legal framework for peaceful use, scientific research, and deferral of legal questions regarding territorial claims. Administration is carried out through consultative member meetings—the last meeting was held in Madrid (Spain) in April 1991.
Consultative (voting) members include seven nations that claim portions of Antarctica as national territory (some claims overlap) and nonclaimant nations. The US and other nations have made no claims, but have reserved the right to claim territory. The US does not recognize the claims of others. The year in parentheses indicates when an acceding nation was voted to full consultative (voting) status, while no date indicates an original 1959 treaty signatory. Claimant nations are—Argentina, Australia, Chile, France, New Zealand, Norway, and the UK. Nonclaimant consultative nations are—Belgium, Brazil (1983), China (1985), Ecuador (1990), Finland (1989), Germany (1981), India (1983), Italy (1987), Japan, South Korea (1989), Netherlands (1990), Peru (1989), Poland (1977), South Africa, Spain (1988), Sweden (1988), Uruguay (1985), the US, and the USSR.
Acceding (nonvoting) members, with year of accession in parenthesis, are—Austria (1987), Bulgaria (1978), Canada (1988), Colombia (1988), Cuba (1984), Czechoslovakia (1962), Denmark (1965), Greece (1987), Hungary (1984), North Korea (1987), Papua New Guinea (1981), Romania (1971), and Switzerland (1990).
Antarctic Treaty Summary:
Article 1—area to be used for peaceful purposes only; military activity, such as weapons testing, is prohibited, but military personnel and equipment may be used for peaceful scientific and logistics purposes;
Article 2—freedom of scientific investigation and cooperation shall continue;
Article 3—free exchange of information and personnel in cooperation with the UN and other international agencies;
Article 4—does not recognize, dispute, or establish territorial claims and no new claims shall be asserted while the treaty is in force;
Article 5—prohibits nuclear explosions or disposal of radioactive wastes;
Article 6—includes under the treaty all land and ice shelves south of 60o 00%19 south, but that the water areas be covered by international law;
Article 7—treaty-state observers have free access, including aerial observation, to any area and may inspect all stations, installations, and equipment; advance notice of all activities and the introduction of military personnel must be given;
Article 8—allows for jurisdiction over observers and scientists by their own states;
Article 9—frequent consultative meetings take place among member nations;
Article 10—treaty states will discourage activities by any country in Antarctica that are contrary to the treaty;
Article 11—disputes to be settled peacefully by the parties concerned or, ultimately, by the ICJ;
Articles 12, 13, 14—deal with upholding, interpreting, and amending the treaty among involved nations.
Other agreements: more than 150 recommendations adopted at treaty consultative meetings and ratified by governments include—Agreed Measures for the Conservation of Antarctic Fauna and Flora (1964); Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Seals (1972); Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (1980); a mineral resources agreement was signed in 1988 but was subsequently rejected by some signatories and is likely to be replaced in 1991 by a comprehensive environmental protection agreement that defers minerals development for a long period.
_*Economy
