Assumption of the existence at the South Pole of a mysterious Terra Australis Incognita- Southern unknown land - spoke out long before the equipment of the first real expeditions there. Ever since scientists have guessed that the Earth has the shape of a ball, they believed that the areas of land and sea in the northern and southern hemispheres are approximately the same. Otherwise, they say, the balance would be disturbed, and our planet would be oriented towards the Sun by the side with a greater mass.
Once again, one has to be surprised at the perspicacity of M.V. Lomonosov, who in 1763, even before Cook's expeditions, very clearly formulated his idea of the Southern Land: “In the vicinity of the Strait of Magellan and against the Cape Good Hope about 53 degrees of midday width, great ice is moving, why should there be no doubt that in a great distance the islands and the matted earth are covered with many and non-melting snows, and that a large vastness of the earth's surface near the South Pole is occupied by them, rather than in the north?.
An interesting point: at first, the prevailing opinion was that the southern continent is much larger than it really was. And when the Dutchman Willem Janson discovered Australia, he gave it a name, proceeding from the assumption that it was a part of that very Terra Australis Incognita…
Off the coast of Antarctica. Photo: Peter Holgate.
The first who managed, albeit not of their own free will, to cross the Antarctic Circle and, in all likelihood, see Antarctica, became the Dutch. In 1559, the ship commanded by Dirk Geeritz, in the Strait of Magellan was caught in a storm and was carried far to the south. Reaching 64 degrees south latitude, the sailors saw « high ground» ... But apart from this mention, history has not preserved any other evidence of a possible discovery. As soon as the weather permitted, Geeritz immediately left the inhospitable Antarctic waters.
Dutch galleon of the 16th century.
It is possible that the case with the ship Geyeritsa was not the only one. Already in our time, wrecks of ships, clothing and kitchen utensils dating from the 16th-17th centuries have been repeatedly found on the coast of the Antarctic islands. One of these fragments, which belonged to a Spanish galleon of the 18th century, is kept in the museum of the Chilean city of Valparaiso. True, skeptics believe that all this evidence of shipwrecks could have been brought to Antarctica waves and currents.
In the 17th-18th centuries, French navigators distinguished themselves: they discovered the islands of South Georgia, Bouvet and Kerguelen, located in "Roaring forties" latitudes. The British, not wanting to lag behind their competitors, also equipped two expeditions in a row in 1768-1775. It was they who became an important stage in the study of the southern hemisphere.
Both expeditions were led by the famous captain James Cook... He repeatedly crossed the Arctic Circle, was covered by ice, crossed the 71st degree of south latitude and was only 75 miles from the shores of the sixth continent, but an insurmountable wall of ice prevented them from reaching them.
Cook's expedition ship "Endeavor", modern replica.
Despite the failure to find mainland land, overall Cook's expeditions yielded impressive results. It was found that New Zealand- this is an archipelago, and not part of the southern mainland, as previously suggested. In addition, the shores of Australia, the vast waters of the Pacific Ocean were explored, several islands were discovered, astronomical observations were carried out, etc.
In domestic literature, there are statements that Cook did not believe in the existence of the Southern Land and allegedly openly declared this. In fact, this is not the case. James Cook argued just the opposite: “I will not deny that there may be a continent or significant land near the pole. On the contrary, I am convinced that such a land exists, and it is possible that we have seen part of it. Great cold weather, a huge number of ice islands and floating ice - all this proves that the land in the south should be ".
He even wrote a special treatise "The case for the existence of land near the South Pole", and named the open South Sandwich Islands in honor of the first Lord of the Admiralty Land of Sandwich, mistakenly believing that this is the protrusion of the mainland southern continent... At the same time, Cook, faced with the extremely harsh Antarctic climate, came to the conclusion that further research was useless. Since the mainland, "Being open and examined, it would still not benefit either navigation, geography, or other branches of science"... Probably, it was this statement that for a long time discouraged the desire to send new expeditions to the southern land, and for half a century the harsh Antarctic waters were visited mainly by whaling and hunting ships.
Captain James Cook.
The next and possibly the most important discovery in history Antarctica was made by Russian sailors. In July 1819, the first Russian Antarctic expedition was launched as part of two Russian Imperial Fleets "East" and "Mirny"... The first of them, and the detachment as a whole, was commanded by the captain of the 2nd rank, the second - by the lieutenant Mikhail Petrovich Lazarev... It is curious that the goals of the expedition were exclusively scientific - it had to explore the remote waters of the World Ocean and find the mysterious southern continent, penetrating "As far as latitude as possible to reach".
The Russian sailors performed the assigned tasks brilliantly. On January 28 (according to the ship's "average astronomical" time, 12 o'clock ahead of St. Petersburg time), 1820, they came close to the ice barrier of the Antarctic continent. According to them, there was "Ice field dotted with hillocks"... Lieutenant Lazarev was more specific: "We met hard ice of extreme heights ... it stretched as far as sight could only reach ... From here we continued our way to the east, attempting at every opportunity to the south, but we always met the ice-floe continent"... This day is now considered the opening day. Antarctica... Although, strictly speaking, the Russian seafarers did not see the land itself: they were 20 miles from the coast, later called Queen Maud Land, and only an ice shelf appeared to their eyes.
Curiously, just three days later, on the other side of the mainland, an English sailing ship under the command of the captain Edward Bransfield approached the Antarctic Peninsula, and the ground was supposedly visible from its side. The same was stated by the captain of an American hunting ship. Nathaniel Palmer, who visited the same place in November 1820. True, both of these ships were engaged in whale and seal fishing, and their captains were primarily interested in commercial benefits, and not in the laurels of the discoverers of new lands.
American whaling ships in Antarctic waters. Artist Roy Cross.
In fairness, we note that, despite a number of controversial issues, recognition and Lazareva pioneers Antarctica deservedly and fairly. January 28, 1821 - exactly one year after the meeting with "Ice continent"- Russian sailors in sunny weather clearly saw and even sketched the mountainous coast. The last doubts disappeared: not just an ice massif, but snow-capped rocks stretched to the south. The open land was mapped as the Land of Alexander I. It is interesting to note that for a long time the Land of Alexander I was considered part of the mainland, and only in 1940 it turned out that it was an island: a strait was discovered under a multi-meter layer of shelf ice, separating it from the continent.
For two years of sailing, the ships of the first Russian Antarctic expedition went around open continent, leaving more than 50 thousand miles astern. 29 new islands were discovered, a huge amount of various research was carried out.
Sloops "Vostok" and "Mirny" off the coast of Antarctica. Artist E.V. Voishvillo.
The first person to set foot on the earth - or rather, the ice - of the southern continent, in all likelihood, was the American St. John Davis. On February 7, 1821, he disembarked from a fishing vessel in West Antarctica near Cape Charles. However, this fact is not documented in any way and is cited only from the words of the sailor, therefore many historians do not recognize it. The first confirmed landing on the ice continent took place 74 years (!) Later - on January 24, 1895. Norwegian
Antarctica is an amazing continent opposite the Arctic. The central part of Antarctica falls on the geographic center of the south of the Earth.
The southernmost continent of the planet is washed simultaneously by three of the five oceans, including the Indian, Atlantic and Pacific. Among geographers and travelers, these three oceans are informally called South ocean.
total area totals 14107 thousand km2, where the islands account for about 75.5 thousand km2 and 930 thousand km2 for ice shelves.
Antarctica has a lot of distinctive features from other continents. It has the lowest air temperature with a low level of humidity, a high indicator of radiation (solar) against the background of the highest intensity and duration of wind flows.
Under the concept of Antarctica falls not only the mainland itself, but also several nearby islets.
The novelized version of the name "Antarctica" comes from the Greek word translated as "opposite the Arctic or the north", which Aristotle mentioned in his works ("Meteorology").
Apart from the mention by Aristotle, the existence of the continent was hypothesized by geographers. And even sometimes on some maps it was united with Australia and South America... But thanks to the round-the-world voyage of Russian sailors, it became known for certain about the existence of another continent.
The entire area of the mainland was first marked on a world map Englishman John Murray entitled "The Proposed Antarctic Continent" in 1886.
This continent was officially named Antarctica in 1890 by the famous Scottish cartographer D. D. Bartholomew.
Which of the travelers discovered Antarctica
The discoverers of the southernmost continent are Russian seafarers, who during their round-the-world cruise discovered new lands, later called the "continent of ice".
The names of the glorious Russian sailors:
- M.P. Lazarev;
- F.F. Bellingshausen.
This event took place in 1820 during an Antarctic round-the-world trip. The discoverers named the discovered lands "Ice Continent", but after 20 years, with the light hand of the American explorer and naval officer Charles Wilkes, the continent received its new name - "Antarctic Continent".
Date of discovery of Antarctica 01.16.1820
Russian expedition led by F. Bellingshausen and M. Lazarev stepped onto the glacial lands, coming up to the shores on the boats "Mirny" and "Vostok". The landing site is currently called the Bellingshausen shelf.
The journey began back in 1819, when Russian travelers visited South Georgia on sloops. Thus, M. Lazarev and F. Bellingshausen penetrated the waters of the Arctic Ocean up to the Greenwich meridian at 69 ° 21 ′, where modern Antarctica is located. Moreover, Bellingshausen was the first navigator who completed a full circle around the continent between latitudes 60-70 °.
How the polar expedition proceeded
The scientific expedition achieved the incredible - it circled the entire Earth on the ice of the South Pole and was the first to descend to the lands of the continent. The members of the naval expedition led by Bellingshausen and Lazarev were specific personalities who felt the Antarctic land under their feet. The discovery of a new continent fell on 01/28/1820 old style.
After lengthy preparation, two warships set off on the polar expedition from Kronstadt, the Vostok was under the leadership of F. Bellingshausen, and the Mirny was led by M. Lazarev. The polar explorers had a clear task - to penetrate as far as possible to the South Pole and find out the truth about the existence of a new continent.
During the travelling, the discoverer of Antarctica Bellingshausen had to stay in the port of Portsmouth in England to replenish supplies and necessary equipment.
And in the fall, ships under favorable winds were heading to Brazil on the waters Atlantic Ocean... All observations and current events were recorded in the logbook, where it was indicated that on the 21st day of the voyage, the sloops anchored off the coast. After the ships sailed off the coast of Brazil, they headed for the cold waters of the Arctic Circle, and at the end of 1819 were already near the island of South Georgia.
The sloops moved very carefully among the floating ice and drifting icebergs. Bellingshausen made futile attempts to measure the depth of the waters.
Early 1820 the sailors stumbled upon the first island unknown to the world, which was later named after the surname of Lieutenant Annenkov, who described these lands. Then, on the way of the brave sailors, the islands of Zavadsky and Leskov met, which also received their names in honor of the members of the expedition.
After that, the boats sailed to the open island group Traverse (named after the minister). After that, the Sreteniya and Sadvichev islands were discovered (the latter turned out to be an archipelago).
Thanks to Russian sailors on geographic map the world the South Sandwich Islands appeared... And by the end of the first month of 1820, the sailors stumbled upon ice stretching many kilometers ahead to the very horizon.
During circumnavigation, which lasted 751 days, the sloops covered 92,000 km. The expedition members managed to discover 30 new islands, one of which turned out to be a coral reef. The unexplored Antarctica began to take shape on the world map around the South Pole, and thanks to the research carried out, a new science was born - oceanography.
Thanks to a number of voyages around the world that were made by seafarers different countries, science has been enriched with many new facts and greatest discoveries... The discovery of the Antarctic continent is on the list of the most important discoveries of the early 19th century. Until scientists had a compelling reason to designate a new continent on the map, they were a "blank spot" of the alleged continent of the southern lands.
Interest in Antarctica by foreign sailors
After that, travelers from different countries discovered new lands of Antarctica and entered them into maps. So, C. Wilkes walked at an east longitude of 97-158 °, J. Dumont-Durville discovered new Adelie Lands for everyone, a navigator from Great Britain became the discoverer of Victoria Land and the Ross Sea.
Antarctica attracted travelers from various countries. A lot of expeditions were sent to this continent, the fate of many of which ended tragically. Between some Antarctic expeditions, a serious struggle even unfolded for the primacy of the conquest of the South Pole. So, it is believed that the first conquerors were travelers led by Raoul Amundsen.
And already in the middle of the 20th century, Antarctica began to be studied for reasons of industrial interest.
Who owns Antarctica
There are many who wish to own an entire continent, but Antarctica does not belong to any state. In 1959, on the first day of December, a convention was signed on the fate of Antarctica, according to which only scientific research activities can be carried out on this continent. This international document entered into force in 1961 on June 23rd. The convention has been signed by 50 different states that have the right to vote. This normative act supports a dozen more countries that have observer status.
But, as it turned out, owning a state and claiming its territory are two different things. Territorial claims to the lands of Antarctica have many countries, the sailors of which visited the mainland during expeditions. So, claims to significant territories:
- Norway;
- United Kingdom;
- New Zealand;
- Australia;
- Argentina;
- and other countries.
China, the United States, Russia have not yet made official statements about claims on the territory of Antarctica, but this does not mean that they will not do so in the future. Currently, these three states, and some others, have polar stations that are diligently conducting research activities to detect natural resources including. Compatriots know the Russian polar station called Vostok, Bellingshausen, Druzhnaya, Leningradskaya, Mirny, Molodezhnaya, etc.
Antarctica, Wikipedia confirms this, on this moment the only continent that remains fully uninhabited people... Although in these lands there are a lot of scientific bases and abandoned settlements of whalers. Geological scientists have confirmed huge deposits of natural resources in Antarctica and fresh water, which, in the near future, humanity will need.
The difficult climate of Antarctica is not conducive to the permanent settlement of the continent by inhabitants. Among the temporary settlers of geologists and scientists (including Russian), you can count 4000-1000 people, depending on the season.
2015 marks exactly 195 years since Russian sailors Admiral Thaddeus Bellingshausen and Admiral Mikhail Lazarev discovered the last continent - Antarctica.
The latest of the Great Geographical Discoveries took place in 1820, January 16, or 28 - in a new style: on this day the courts "Mirny" and "Vostok" approached the unknown land.
Discoverers of Antarctica
Today Antarctica is a whole "list of lands", by the names of which one can judge who discovered Antarctica for a long time after the Russian sailors. Each new or new discoverer gave the area explored a name.
So, the Land of Adele is an administrative (according to the claim) district of France, a section of the mainland, discovered by Jules Dumont d'Urville in 1837 and named by the traveler in honor of his beloved wife Adele.
Victoria Land is claimed by two states at once - New Zealand and Australia, and the site was discovered and explored in 1841 by the British Sir James Clark Ross, since 1856 Rear Admiral. A brave naval sailor dedicated his discovery to Queen Victoria.
Queen Maud Land is the territory of Norway's claims (the site is named after the Norwegian Queen), Queen Mary Land is Australia, Mary Byrd Land is the only one without territorial claims, and it got its name after the wife of Richard Bearle, an American aviator who was the first in 1929 was able to fly on an airplane over the South Pole.
Since December 1, 1959, when the Antarctic Treaty was concluded, all claims to the ownership of Antarctic lands have been frozen indefinitely, and the mainland itself and the adjacent islands have been declared a nuclear-weapon-free zone intended for peaceful research for the benefit of all mankind.
Odyssey of Lazarev and Bellingshausen
The last great discovery before the discovery of Antarctica happened in 1606: the world learned about Australia. 
Faddey Faddeevich Bellingshausen. Wikimedia Commons / Svetlana Nick ()
However, the suspicion that further, to the south, there was something else, an unknown rich land, lived in the minds of people. But for more than three centuries, the extreme south for travelers was the island of South Georgia.
In 1601 A. Vespucci sailed to it. In the footsteps of Vespucci "for a new continent" went James Cook, who discovered the island of South Thule and the islands of Sandwich Land. British W. Smith in search of gold discovered the South Shetland Islands.
In 1819, the Naval Ministry of Russia received a letter of appeal from Admiral Ivan Kruzenshtern, who wrote about the urgent need to equip expeditions to the Poles - South and North.
"Through ice and despair"
Already on July 15, the sloops of the First Russian Antarctic Expedition, led by Captain Bellingshausen, left the Kronstadt fortress. In November, they were off the coast of Rio de Janeiro, from where they sailed towards South Georgia, reaching it in December.
Further, moving southward, the expedition discovered Annenkov Island - it was named so in honor of Lieutenant Mikhail Annenkov, who was part of the expedition, for the reason that the lieutenant made the discovery.
Behind Annenkov's island there were others - Leskov, Zavadovsky. The group was named after the Minister of the Sea Traverse. The next rocky island group on the way was named the Sreteniya Islands. 
Mikhail Petrovich Lazarev. Engraving by P.F. Borel, after drawing by I. Thomson (1834)
The waterway to the south was getting heavier. The water - as far as the eye could see - was filled with thick broken ice... Bypassing the icy mess, the sloops turned north several times, but did not surrender.
In 1820, on January 27, ships crossed the line of the Antarctic Circle. Continuing to sail, the ships found themselves among the "hard ice of extreme heights", which seemed to stretch infinitely ... Before the brave sailors lay the ice sheet of Antarctica.
The sloops did not reach only three kilometers to the northeastern Antarctic ledge - only 110 years later the Norwegians will see it and name it according to the prevailing local tradition Princess Martha Shore.
February 1820 - the expedition leaves for Indian Ocean... This is followed by two more unsuccessful attempts to break through the solid ice and a stop in Port Jackson, Australia (present-day Sydney), where they dropped anchors in April.
29 new islands and just one mainland ...
The odyssey to the South Pole continued in November. In January 1821, the explorers saw another island, which they named after the great pioneer, artisan and sailor Peter I. It can be assumed that the crews thereby trusted his patronage, the happy Petrova Star.
1821 January 28 from sloops observed the coast, mountainous and lasting beyond the visible. The coast was called the Land of Alexander I. This discovery dispelled the last doubts that Antarctica is a continent, and not just the ice shell of the pole. 
In February, the "Vostok" was damaged, and a small flotilla - through Rio de Janeiro, then - Lisbon - sailed to Kronstadt. In August 1821, the sailors set foot on their native land.
The Arctic Odyssey lasted 751 days. Sloops and people covered over 92,000 kilometers of the way. Russian sailors discovered 29 islands and only one mainland - Antarctica.
The most remote, cold and mysterious of all the continents of our planet, keeping many secrets, is Antarctica. Who is the discoverer? What is the flora and fauna on the continent? All this and not only will be discussed in the article.
general description
Antarctica - great desert, a deserted continent that does not belong to any of the existing states. In 1959, an agreement was signed, according to which citizens of any state have the right of access to the mainland, to study any of its points and only for peaceful purposes. In this connection, more than 16 scientific stations were built in Antarctica to study the continent. Moreover, the information obtained there becomes the property of all mankind.
Antarctica is the fifth largest continent, with a total area of over 14 million square kilometers. It is characterized by low temperatures. The lowest was recorded - 89.2 degrees below zero. The weather on the mainland is changeable and unevenly distributed. On the outskirts it is one, and in the center it is completely different.
Climatic features of the mainland
A distinctive feature of the continent's climate is not only low temperatures, but also dryness. Here you can find dry valleys that form in the upper ten centimeter layer of falling snow. The continent has not seen precipitation in the form of rain for more than 2 million years. On the continent, the combination of cold and dryness reaches its peak. Despite this, the mainland contains more than 70% of the fresh water supply, but only in the form of ice. The peculiarity of the climate is similar to the climate on the planet Mars. Strong and prolonged winds, which reach 90 meters per second, and powerful solar radiation are concentrated in Antarctica.
Flora of the continent
The peculiarities of the climatic zone of Antarctica affect the scarcity of the diversity of plants and animals. The mainland is practically devoid of vegetation, but some species of mosses and lichens can still be found on the edge of the mainland and on areas of land thawed from snow and ice, the so-called oasis islands. These representatives of the plant species often form peat bogs. Lichens are represented in a wide variety of more than three hundred species. In the lakes formed due to the thawing of the earth, you can find lower algae. In the summer, Antarctica is beautiful and in some places is represented by colorful spots of red, green and yellow, where lawns can be seen. This is the result of the accumulation of protozoan algae.
Flowering plants are rare and not found everywhere, there are more than two hundred of them, among them the Kerguelen cabbage stands out, which is not only a nutritious vegetable, but also good remedy, preventing the appearance of scurvy, due to the high content of vitamins. It is found on the Kerguelen Islands, from where it got its name, and South Georgia. Due to the absence of insects, flowering plants are pollinated by the wind, which causes the absence of pigment in the leaves of herbaceous plants, they are colorless. Scientists note that Antarctica was once the center of flora formation, however, changing conditions on the continent led to a change in its flora and fauna.
Fauna of Antarctica
Animal world in Antarctica is scarce, especially for terrestrial species. There are some types of worms, lower crustaceans and insects. Of the latter, you can find flies, but they are all wingless, and indeed, there are no winged insects on the continent due to constant strong winds... But in addition to wingless flies, wingless butterflies, some species of beetles, spiders and freshwater molluscs are also found in Antarctica.
In contrast to the meager terrestrial fauna, the Antarctic continent is rich in marine and semi-terrestrial animals, which are represented by numerous pinnipeds and cetaceans. These are fur seals, whales, seals, a favorite place of which are floating ice... The most famous marine animals of Antarctica are penguins - birds that swim and dive beautifully, but do not fly due to their short flipper-like wings. The main food ingredients of penguins are fish, but they do not hesitate to feast on shellfish and crustaceans.
Significance of Antarctica Exploration
For a long time, sailing on the seas after the voyage of the navigator Cook was terminated. For half a century, not a single ship managed to do what the sailors of England did. The history of the study of Antarctica began in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. It was the Russian mariners who managed to do what Cook did not succeed in, and the door to Antarctica, which they once closed, opened. This was accomplished during the period of intensive construction of capitalism in Russia, during the period of special attention to geographical discoveries, since the formation of capitalism required development in industrial industry and trade, which, in turn, required the development of scientific activity, the study of natural resources and the establishment of trade routes. It all started with the development of Siberia, its vast area, then the shores of the Pacific Ocean and, finally, North America... The interests of politics and seafarers diverged. The researchers set the goal of their travels to discover unknown continents, to learn something new. For politicians, the significance of the study of Antarctica was reduced to expanding the market in the international arena, increasing colonial influence and raising the level of prestige of their state.
History of the discovery of Antarctica
In 1803-1806 Russian travelers I.F.Kruzenshtern and Yu.F. Lisyansky made the first trip around the world, which was equipped by two companies - Russian and American. Already in 1807-1809, V.M. Golovin was sent to sail on a military boat.
The defeat of Napoleon in 1812 inspired many naval officers on long voyages and research trips. This coincided with the Tsar's desire to annex and secure separate lands for Russia. Research during sea travel led to the designation of the boundaries of all continents, in addition, the boundaries of three oceans - the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific, were studied, but the spaces at the poles of the Earth have not yet been explored.
Who are the discoverers of Antarctica?
FF Bellingshausen and MP Lazarev became the first explorers of Antarctica, representatives of the Russian expedition led by IF Kruzenshtern. The expedition consisted mainly of young people wishing to go to the continent - military personnel. A team of 205 people was accommodated on two boats "Vostok" and "Mirny". The expedition leadership received the following instructions:
- Accurate adherence to the assigned tasks.
- Full compliance with the rules of navigation and full supply of the crew.
- Comprehensive surveillance and ongoing travel logging.
Bellingshausen and Lazarev were inspired by the belief in the existence of new lands. The discovery of new lands is the new main goal of the inspired sailors. The presence of such in the region of the South Pole could be found in the works of M.V. Lomonosov and Johann Forster, who believed that the icebergs formed in the ocean are of continental origin. During the expedition, Bellingshausen and Lazarev made adjustments to Cook's notes. They managed to give a description of the shores in the direction of Sandwich Land, which Cook was never able to do.
Discovery of the continent
During the expedition, approaching the South Pole, famous explorers of Antarctica encountered first one large iceberg, and then with a group of mountainous islands of snow and ice. Moving between the snowy peaks, Russian sailors for the first time approached the Antarctic continent. A snowy coast opened before the travelers' eyes, but the mountains and rocks were not covered with snow. It seemed to them that the coast was endless, however, deciding to make sure that this was the southern continent, they drove around it along the coast. It turned out to be an island. The result of the expedition, which lasted 751 days, was the discovery of a new continent - Antarctica. The sailors managed to map the islands, bays, capes and so on encountered on the way. During the expedition, some species of animals, plants, samples rocks.
Damage to fauna
The discovery of Antarctica caused great damage to the fauna of this continent, some species of marine animals were completely exterminated. In the 19th century, when Antarctica became a center for whaling, many species of marine life were significantly affected. The fauna of the continent is currently under the protection of an international association.
Scientific delights
Scientific research in Antarctica boiled down to the fact that researchers from different countries, in addition to catching whales and other representatives of the animal world, discovered new territories, studied the peculiarities of the climate. They also measured the depth of the sea.
Already in 1901, the modern explorer of Antarctica, Robert Scott, traveled to the shores of the southern continent, where he made many important discoveries and collected a lot of information about both flora and fauna, and about minerals. Since the 1930s, not only the water and land part of Antarctica has been fully explored, but also its air spaces, and since the 1950s, oceanic and geological work has been carried out.
Russian researchers in Antarctica
Our compatriots have done a lot to explore these lands. A scientific station in Antarctica was opened by Russian researchers and the settlement of Mirny was founded. People today know much more about the continent than they did a hundred years ago. There is information about the weather conditions of the mainland, its animal and flora, geological features, however, the ice itself has not been fully studied, the study of which continues today. Today, scientists are concerned about the movement of Antarctic ice, their density, speed and composition.
Our days
One of the main values of the study of Antarctica is the search for minerals in the depths of the endless snowy desert. It has been established that the continent contains coal, iron ore, non-ferrous metals, as well as precious metals and stones. Reconstruction of the complete picture of the ancient period of ice melting is of no small importance in modern research. It is already known that the Antarctic ice was formed earlier than the ice sheets of the Northern Hemisphere. The researchers came to the conclusion about the similarity of the geostructure of Antarctica with South Africa... The once uninhabited expanses are a source of research for polar explorers, who today are the only inhabitants of Antarctica. They include biologists, geologists and other scientists from different countries. They are the modern explorers of Antarctica.
The impact of human intervention on the integrity of the mainland
Modern opportunities and technologies allow wealthy tourists to visit Antarctica. Each new visit to the continent has a negative impact on the ecological background as a whole. The biggest threat is posed by global warming, affecting the entire planet. This can lead to the melting of ice, to changes not only the ecosystem of the continent, but also the entire World Ocean. That is why any scientific research on the continent is under the control of the world scientific community. A reasonable and careful approach to the development of the continent is important in order to preserve it in its original form.
Activities of modern polar explorers on the mainland
Scientists are increasingly interested in the question of the survival of microorganisms in extreme conditions environment, for which there was a proposal to bring some types of microbial communities to the mainland. This is necessary to breed the species most resistant to cold, low humidity and solar radiation for its further use in the pharmaceutical industry. Scientists are trying to study data on the course of modification of living organisms and the effect on them of prolonged absence of contact with the atmosphere.
Living on a cold continent is not easy, climatic features are considered difficult for humans, even though the expedition members spend most time in a room where comfortable conditions are created. In preparation, the polar explorers are subjected to special testing by medical workers in order to choose psychologically resistant candidates from among the candidates. Modern life polar explorers is due to the presence of fully equipped stations. There is a satellite dish, electronic communications, devices that measure the temperature of air, water, snow and ice.
Antarctica is a mystery continent that beckons travelers with its secrets. How did the discovery of Antarctica come about? What mysteries are hidden in this kingdom of the Snow Queen? And what fate awaits her in the future?
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Who Discovered Antarctica?
The discovery of Antarctica took place back in 1820, it was made by the Russian navigators Bellingshausen and Lazarev. However, they only witnessed the existence of a new continent during their journey. The first to set foot on the mainland were the American navigators of the vessel "Cecilia" almost a year after the discovery of the mainland by Lazarev and Bellingshausen. After the discovery of Antarctica by Russian sailors, many of the travelers became interested in the mysterious continent. What seafarers just didn’t rush to the cold distances of the South Arctic Circle. Charles Wilkes, Jules Dumont-Durville, James Ross, Carsten Borchgrevink and many others from all over the world have contributed to the exploration of Antarctica.
In the middle of the 20th century, the study of Antarctica began to be of industrial interest. At this time, various meteorological and geological studies were carried out. The legal status of Antarctica determined that this continent does not belong to any of the countries, therefore, sailors of any country could and can freely visit it and conduct the necessary research and study of the territory. The history of the study of the mainland is replete with a mass of discoveries and research - the territory of the mainland is divided into so-called "lands" and each "land" is named after the traveler who discovered it, or some famous person. So, there you can find the Land of Queen Elizabeth, the Land of Alexander I, the Land of William II and many others.
The discovery of Antarctica is accompanied by a mass interesting facts and riddles. For example, in 1991, information appeared that the remains of a Cryolophosaurus, an early Jurassic dinosaur that once lived in the vastness of Antarctica, were discovered on the territory of Antarctica. Antarctica is located in an area of extremely unfavorable natural conditions for human life, this explains the fact why it was discovered later than all continents.
So, what is the importance of discovering such a mysterious and atypical continent like Antarctica? It is unique and is of serious interest for studying the nature of many phenomena that are possible only in the climate of Antarctica. The mainland is the most valuable find among the discovery of all lands and continents. The discovery of Antarctica was the greatest and most important milestone in the history of the study of our planet, which gave impetus for scientific research and initiation of mankind into many of the mysteries of the universe.
Discovery of Antarctica by Bellingshausen and Lazarev
For a long time Antarctica was in the darkness of mystery and was inaccessible to mankind. But all the secret is destined to become clear, and once, thanks to Russian sailors, the secret of this amazing continent was revealed to mankind. The first Russian Antarctic expedition, which took place in 1819, was aimed at searching for a continent that could theoretically exist in the Antarctic region. What kind of Russian navigators accomplished this geographical feat?
Two Russian admirals (at that time - captain II rank and lieutenant), conquerors of the seas and oceans, fearless knights of the helm and dagger - Lazarev and Bellingshausen on two ships - "Vostok" and "Mirny" set off to conquer the South Pole. Careful preparations were made by the sailors for such an important event. In July 1819, the expedition finally set out from Kronstadt and rushed to the island of South Georgia, then the ships rushed east. In January 1820, the expedition approached the shores of Antarctica. Due to the onset of the Antarctic winter and, as a result, the unfavorable situation, the sailors who discovered Antarctica went to Pacific Ocean, where a number of islands were discovered and with the onset of the Antarctic summer they returned to the study of Antarctica.
The journey of Bellingshausen and Lazarev became an important milestone not only in the history of geographical discoveries, but also in the history of all mankind. Their journey was the last major geographical discovery and ended an era of great discoveries. The discovery of the mainland allowed scientists around the world to begin to study this unique territory with an unusual climate and weather conditions... Expedition leaders 1819-1821 discovered Antarctica and twenty-six islands, carried out invaluable research and observations, made sketches of the mainland species and living animals. The exploit of seafarers can hardly be overestimated. They made an invaluable contribution to science and the development of all mankind.
Antarctica discovery date
The year 1820 is inscribed in the history of mankind in golden letters. This is the year the greatest was done geographical discovery- the discovery of the sixth continent on the planet Earth - Antarctica. This event marked the beginning of large-scale research activities and the discovery of secrets mysterious land- Antarctica. The year the continent was discovered became the starting point for the start of even more significant research. What date is considered the day of the discovery of Antarctica? What century became a turning point in its history? When the veil of secrecy was lifted over this unique land, where until the eighteenth century a man's foot had not set foot?
There is no single answer to this question. The first ship crossed the Antarctic Circle back in 1599. In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, seafarers discovered a number of islands around Antarctica, such as South Georgia, Bouvet and others. And only in 1819, Russian navigators Bellingshausen and Lazarev deliberately set off towards the South Pole in order to discover the mainland, which, according to the assumptions of navigators, could be there. And their hypothesis came true - as a result of a two-year wandering across the endless expanses of the ocean, the continent of Antarctica and several dozen islands were discovered. This was the beginning of massive expeditions to the mainland, a number of studies and discoveries, the value of which for humanity is simply endless.
The unique climate of Antarctica has attracted scientists from all over the world. Despite the harsh climate of the mainland, the flora and fauna of this territory is very rich and varied. Seals, birds, penguins and many others live on the mainland. From plants - mosses, lichens and ferns. Today, several dozen scientific stations around the world operate on the territory of Antarctica. At the end of the last century, scientists concluded that the flora of the continent is changing, the number of plants is increasing, which indicates climate change and global warming. This is also evidenced by the melting ice of Antarctica. This sad fact can lead to a rise in ocean levels, which means flooding of territories and even entire cities.
And in general, climate change will lead to the death of plants and animals, which in turn will have a detrimental effect on human life. On the other hand, a softening of the climate to a more comfortable one can even lead to the settlement of Antarctica and its more active development, which, undoubtedly, could be unique experience for a person. In any case, Antarctica keeps a lot of mysteries and can surprise humanity with various metamorphoses. It is quite possible that in 100-200 years this kingdom of the Snow Queen will appear before us in a completely unusual and unexpected form.
