HOW DO THE ARCTIC AND ANTARCTIC DIFFER?

At the North and South Poles there are areas that are covered by thick layers of snow and ice all year round, but the two areas are very different. The Antarctic region, around the South Pole, has land far under the ice. The Arctic region, around the North Pole, is actually frozen sea. It is possible for a submarine to travel right under the North Pole. Because in Polar Regions the sea is warmer than the land or ice, the Arctic, with more sea, is not as cold as the Antarctic.

Antarctica, or the South Pole region, is a continent which is covered with an immense ice shelf. The Arctic region, however, is mainly located in the north polar ocean and includes several larger islands such as Greenland, Spitzbergen, Franz Josef Land, Severnaya Zemlya Wrangel Island, Bank Island, Victoria Island, Ellesmere Island and various others that all boarder countries like Russia, Canada, Alaska and Greenland. The north polar ocean is covered by year round ice caps that generally extend far south during the Arctic winter and are made up of around 16 million square kilometers of ice. Polar bears live solely in the Arctic areas, while penguins on the other hand, are found in the southern Antarctic regions. For that reason polar bears and penguins never cross paths.

Unlike Antarctica, the Arctic is not a continent which is the predominant different between the two polar regions. Under the massive ice cap of the Arctic lies the Arctic Ocean whose depths reach 15,000 feet below the surface. Often times the two polar regions are confused due to their having such similar names. The Arctic was discovered by Phoenician sailors years before the common era (CE). They named the newly discovered region after a polar star which guided them to the end of the earth. The star was called “Arktos” by the Greeks during this time which meant “land of the big bear”. Coincidentally, this title helps many people remember that polar bears are found in the Arctic rather than Antarctica. Also found in the Arctic region is the arctic fox, different species of seals and whales, puffins, fulmars, and other bird species.

Though the Arctic is obviously a very cold region, it is still much warmer than Antarctica in the South. Known as “the land of the midnight sun,” the Arctic is located in a landmass above 12 frozen feet of ice.

1. Penguins are only seen in Antarctica. There are no penguins in the Arctic. In the Antarctic, there are no land predators which also mean it’s a bit easier for penguins to survive. The waters, however, are a different story!

2. Polar bears only exist in the Arctic. These larger-than-life bears roam the North in search of prey and habitat.

3. Arguably the biggest difference between the two regions is that Antarctica is a continent surrounded by oceans, while the Arctic is an ocean surrounded by continents and countries —north America, Europe, and Asia.

4. Because they are on opposite sides of the world, the Arctic and the Antarctic do not share the same seasons. The Arctic enjoys winter from October through March, while Antarctica’s winter is from March through September.

5. The Arctic has a considerable flora— with some 900 flowering plants. The Antarctic has very little vegetation, mostly lichens and algae. There are only two flowering plans in Antarctica.