ANTARCTIC
is the seventh continent of the world and unlike the North pole is made up of solid rock covered in ice.
It is regarded as the remotest and driest place on earth. Difficult to imagine but has less rain than the Sahara Desert.
It is also a massive continent, bigger than Australia and also bigger than the USA.
The physical altitude of the geographical pole is 9500 feet above sea level but because the air is thinner at the poles, the density of the air is equivalent to being at approximately 12000 to 15000 feet.
What the importance of this?
Well, tie a car tyre to your waist and drag it around the block at sea level and see how out of breath you become. Then try and imagine what it is like if the air is much thinner which could require breathing twice or more as much. Not a simple task but that is what it entails to make it to the SOUTH POLE, Oh! And dont forget the added challenge of the warmest day possibly being as high as -20 degrees Celsius but more realistically when the wind blows in excess of 100km/hr it should get below -40 dgrees Celsius.
Yes, winter woollies are a must. Loosing a glove amounts to loosing a few fingers and a simple tasks such as going to the toilet takes some major planning and is done at close to the speed of light.
Lets get down there and see what its all about
