The longest river in Antarctica on the map. Man on the Ice Continent - L.I. Dubrovin. What time is it now? What do you need
When you look at such a photograph taken on the shore of a lake, can you think that it was taken in the depths of the mainland Antarctica? I also thought that this continent is covered at all times of the year, if not with a thick layer of ice, but there are no huge areas of open land, and even more so with rivers and lakes. The coast is thawing, well, a couple of kilometers inland - that's all. But it turns out it's not...
About the absence of many kilometers of ice thickness, we can conclude (at least off the coast)
Antarctic Lake Vanda. The lake is 5 km long and has a maximum depth of 69 m.
Huge ice-free expanses in Antarctica
This is what it looks like in satellite pictures. Territory approximately 30x50 km without ice and snow
The terrain of this place
I learned about this place from this video:
Some will say that this is so, in the summer the ice melted, the valleys became bare. But the fact is that even in winter there is no, not only accumulated ice, but also snow.
Lake in winter
Land of Victoria. One of the McMurdo Dry Valleys
Agree, not an Antarctic landscape at all. Either this is a huge amount of water erosion worked, or these are faults in the earth's crust, or, as a version, a huge ancient quarry.
Wright Valley. Desert
Glaciers are trying to get into the valleys. But either there is not enough pressure from their main masses, or the temperature in the valley due to a geothermal anomaly is such that they melt, and thanks to this, rivers are allowed to appear. Yes, real rivers in Antarctica:
Onyx - The longest river in Antarctica.
It is located in the Wright Valley in Victoria Land, in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, characterized by an almost year-round lack of snow, high levels of solar insolation and fairly high summer temperatures. The length of the river is about 30 km. It flows into Lake Vanda.
The water level in the river is subject to strong daily and seasonal fluctuations. Onyx has several tributaries and flows only during the late Antarctic summer (February, March). During the rest of the time, the river flow looks like a bare ribbon of ice. Sometimes for several years the river cannot reach Lake Wanda. But peculiar floods also happen, during one of them, in 1984, New Zealand rafters even went down the river.
There are no fish in the river, but there are microorganisms and algae that can be seen blooming.
Weather stations are located along the river, and at the mouth of the river is the New Zealand Wanda station.
(founded in 1968). It is interesting that the maximum air temperature at the station, recorded on January 5, 1974, was +15.0 °C, which, apparently, is the temperature record for the entire Antarctica.
So why is there no snow and “multi-million-year” ice (quoted in quotation marks) in their valleys? Why is there so little snow here? It is hard to believe that the precipitation is blown away by winds that blow at a speed of 320 km / h. First of all - in the speed of such winds. Or maybe the waters of the flood could not overflow here for some reason and, accordingly, freeze? Or has the temperature of the earth's surface melted all the ice? The temperature of deep waters in 23 gr. Lake Wanda talks about it.
In the English-language wikipedia, it is written that Lake Vanda is a hypermineralized lake with a salinity of more than ten times more than sea water, more than the salinity of the Dead Sea, and perhaps even more than that of Lake Assal (Djibouti). Lake Vanda is also meromictic, meaning that the deeper waters of the lake do not mix with the shallow waters. There are three different layers of water ranging from 23°C at the bottom, 7°C in the middle layer and 4-6°C in the upper layers. Those. geothermal lake.
Let's continue our further tour of Antarctica.
McMurdo station is nearby on the island, on the shore of the bay. The hill looks like a waste heap. 77° 50" 35.70" S 166° 38" 50.51" E
Its height is higher than the level of neighboring mountains
The flat surface of the mountains
Why is Antarctica photographed by satellites in winter? Like the Arctic, by the way. But there are also summer photos in the panoramio service.
As can be seen from the photographs, McMurdo Station is a large contingent of researchers. Capital buildings, a lot of machinery and equipment. The station is located on an island in McMurdo Sound. And the central mountain of the island is a volcano:
The diameter of the larger crater is about 500m. But two geologically young craters are located in an older one. It is over 4 km in diameter.
This is Mount Erebus. Puffs of steam sometimes escape from the crater. AT this The book says that the volcano last erupted on September 17, 1984. with the release of volcanic bombs.
As you can see, Antarctica lives a stormy geological life and in some places it is not at all what they show us.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Onyx | |
| Characteristic | |
|---|---|
| Length | |
| Source |
lake Brownworth |
| - Coordinates | |
| mouth | |
| - Coordinates | |
| Country |
Antarctica Antarctica |
| Region | |
Onyx is the longest river in Antarctica. located in wright valley on Victoria Land, in the McMurdo dry valleys, characterized by an almost year-round absence of snow, high levels of solar insolation, and relatively (for Antarctica) high summer temperatures. The length of the river is about 30 km. It flows into Lake Vanda.
The water level in the river is subject to strong daily and seasonal fluctuations. Onyx has several tributaries and flows only during the late Antarctic summer (February, March). During the rest of the time, the river flow looks like a bare ribbon of ice. Sometimes for several years the river cannot reach Lake Wanda. But there are also peculiar floods; during one of them, in 1984, New Zealand rafters even went down the river.
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Notes
An excerpt characterizing Onyx (river)
Seeing the calm of his tres gracieux souverain, Michaud also calmed down, but he had not yet had time to prepare an answer to the sovereign’s direct, essential question, which required a direct answer.– Sire, me permettrez vous de vous parler franchement en loyal militaire? [Sovereign, will you allow me to speak frankly, as befits a real warrior?] – he said to gain time.
- Colonel, je l "exige toujours," said the sovereign. "Ne me cachez rien, je veux savoir absolument ce qu" il en est. [Colonel, I always demand this... Don't hide anything, I certainly want to know the whole truth.]
– Sir! Michaud said with a thin, barely perceptible smile on his lips, having managed to prepare his answer in the form of a light and respectful jeu de mots [pun]. – Sir! j "ai laisse toute l" armee depuis les chefs jusqu "au dernier soldat, sans exception, dans une crainte epouvantable, effrayante ... [Sire! I left the entire army, from the chiefs to the last soldier, without exception, in the great, desperate fear…]
– Comment ca? - strictly frowning, interrupted the sovereign. - Mes Russes se laisseront ils abattre par le malheur ... Jamais! .. [How so? Can my Russians lose heart before failure… Never!..]
This was just what Michaud was waiting for to insert his play on words.
“Sire,” he said with respectful playfulness, “ils craignent seulement que Votre Majeste par bonte de c?ur ne se laisse persuader de faire la paix.” Ils brulent de combattre, - said the representative of the Russian people, - et de prouver a Votre Majeste par le sacrifice de leur vie, combien ils lui sont devoues... . They are eager to fight again and prove to Your Majesty by the sacrifice of their lives how devoted they are to you…]
- Ah! the sovereign said calmly and with a gentle gleam in his eyes, slapping Michaud on the shoulder. - Vous me tranquillisez, colonel. [BUT! You calm me down, Colonel.]
The sovereign, bowing his head, was silent for some time.
- Eh bien, retournez a l "armee, [Well, go back to the army.] - he said, straightening to his full height and addressing Michaud with an affectionate and majestic gesture, - et dites a nos braves, dites a tous mes bons sujets partout ou vous passerez, que quand je n" aurais plus aucun soldat, je me mettrai moi meme, a la tete de ma chere noblesse, de mes bons paysans et j "userai ainsi jusqu" a la derniere ressource de mon empire. Il m "en offre encore plus que mes ennemis ne pensent," said the sovereign, more and more inspired. "Mais si jamais il fut ecrit dans les decrets de la divine providence," he said, raising his beautiful, meek and brilliant feelings eyes to the sky, - que ma dinastie dut cesser de rogner sur le trone de mes ancetres, alors, apres avoir epuise tous les moyens qui sont en mon pouvoir, je me laisserai croitre la barbe jusqu "ici (the sovereign showed his hand to half of his chest) , et j "irai manger des pommes de terre avec le dernier de mes paysans plutot, que de signer la honte de ma patrie et de ma chere nation, dont je sais apprecier les sacrifices!.. [Tell our brave men, tell all my subjects , wherever you pass, that when I have no more soldiers, I myself will become at the head of my amiable nobles and good peasants and thus exhaust the last funds of my state. They are more than my enemies think ... But if destined by divine providence m, so that our dynasty ceases to reign on the throne of my ancestors, then, having exhausted all the means that are in my hands, I will grow my beard until now and rather go to eat one potato with the last of my peasants, rather than decide to sign the shame of my homeland and my dear people, whose sacrifices I know how to appreciate!..] Having said these words in an excited voice, the sovereign suddenly turned around, as if wishing to hide from Michaud the tears that had come into his eyes, and went into the depths of his office. After standing there for a few moments, he returned to Michaud with large steps and with a strong gesture squeezed his hand below the elbow. The beautiful, meek face of the sovereign flushed, and his eyes burned with a gleam of determination and anger.
Antarctica is a continent of eternal cold, where the average temperature is in the region of minus 37 degrees Celsius, and yet there are rivers and lakes, albeit very peculiar ones.
Rivers of Antarctica
Rivers appear here only temporarily in the summer in the coastal zone or in the Antarctic oases, when snow and ice begin to melt. With the advent of autumn and the onset of frosts, the flow of water in the deep riverbeds with steep banks laid by the runoff stops, and the riverbeds are covered with snow. Sometimes the channels are covered with snow even in the presence of a runoff, and then the water flows in a snow tunnel. If the snow cover is not strong enough, it becomes very dangerous for a person who finds himself on it.
The largest rivers in Antarctica are the Onyx and the Victoria. The Onyx River flows through the Wright Oasis and flows into Lake Vanda. Its length is 30 km, it has several tributaries. The Victoria River, flowing through the oasis of the same name, has a length not much inferior to Onyx. There are no fish in these rivers, but there are algae and microorganisms.
Lakes of Antarctica
The main lakes of Antarctica are concentrated on coastal oases. Some lakes are freed from ice in summer. Some are always covered in ice. Meanwhile, there are lakes that do not freeze even in winter with severe frosts. These are saline lakes, the freezing temperature of which, due to their strong mineralization, is well below zero degrees.
The largest lakes in Antarctica are:
- Lake Figurnoe, located between the hills in the Bunger oasis. Its name is associated with a strong tortuosity. The total length of the lake is 20 km, the area is 14.7 sq. km, and the depth is more than 130 m.
- Lake Vostok, having dimensions of about 250 × 50 km and a depth of more than 1200 m, located near the Antarctic station "Vostok". The lake is covered with a thick ice sheet about 4000 m thick. According to scientists, living organisms should live there.
- Lake Vanda, located on Victoria Land, has a length of 5 km and a depth of 69 meters. This is a salt lake of very strong saturation.
Antarctica is not only -89.2°C
1
The official date for the discovery of Antarctica as a continent is January 28, 1820. On this day, the expedition of Bellingshausen and Lazarev approached Antarctica at the point 69 ° 21 "28" south latitude and 2 ° 14 "50" west longitude.
2
On January 24, 1895, the captain of the Norwegian ship "Antarctic" Christensen and the teacher of natural sciences Karsten Borchgrevink were the first to set foot on the continental part of Antarctica.
3
According to the Antarctic Convention, signed on December 1, 1959 and entered into force on June 23, 1961, the cold continent does not belong to any country.
4
Antarctica is the driest, windiest and coldest continent. In Antarctica, at the Russian Vostok station, the lowest temperature in the world was recorded - -89.2°C (-128.6°F).
5
Antarctica has a dialing code of +682 and a top-level domain. aq, as well as the flag (a white continent on a blue background) - but there is no institution of citizenship, no government, since there is no permanent population.
6
February in Antarctica is the height of the short Antarctic summer and the most favorable time for Antarctic diving: at the end of February and at the beginning of March, the parties of winterers change.
7
There are more than 40 year-round research stations in Antarctica - of which five are Russian: Bellingshausen, Vostok, Mirny, Novolazarevskaya, Progress - and three more former Soviet bases are mothballed, while the other eight are closed.
8
Antarctica is home to the cleanest sea on earth, the Weddell Sea.
9
Beer, a refreshing and highly nutritious drink, is included in the mandatory diet of polar explorers working at stations in the Arctic and Antarctic.
10
In October 1999, an iceberg the size of London broke off Antarctica.
11
There are no polar bears in Antarctica
Polar bears do not live in Antarctica at all, but in the Arctic. Penguins inhabit most of Antarctica, but it is unlikely that a penguin will meet a polar bear in natural conditions. Polar bears live in areas such as northern Canada, Alaska, Russia, Greenland and Norway. It's too cold in Antarctica because there are no polar bears. However, recently, scientists are starting to think about how to populate polar bears in Antarctica, as the Arctic is gradually melting.
12
There are rivers in Antarctica. One of them is the Onyx River, which carries meltwater to the east. The Onyx River flows to Lake Vanda in the Wright Dry Valley. Due to extreme climatic conditions, it only flows for two months during the Antarctic summer. Its length is 40 km, and although there are no fish, microorganisms and algae live in this river.
13
The driest place on Earth. One of the most interesting facts about Antarctica is the contrast between the dry climate and the amount of water (70 percent fresh water). This continent is the driest place on our planet. Even the hottest desert in the world receives more rain than the Dry Valleys of Antarctica. In fact, the entire South Pole receives about 10 cm of precipitation per year.
14
Inhabitants of Antarctica. There are no permanent residents in Antarctica. The only people who live there for any period of time are those who are part of the temporary scientific communities. In summer, the number of scientists and support staff is about 5,000, while in winter no more than 1,000 people remain to work here.
15
Who owns Antarctica? There is no government in Antarctica, and no country in the world owns this continent. Although many countries have tried to claim ownership of these lands, an agreement has been reached that grants Antarctica the privilege of being the only region on Earth that is not ruled by any country.
16
Looking for Meteorites One of the interesting facts about this continent is the fact that Antarctica is the best place to find meteorites. Apparently, meteorites that hit the Antarctic ice sheet are better preserved than anywhere else on Earth. Fragments of meteorites from Mars are the most valuable and unexpected discoveries. Probably, the speed of release from this planet had to be about 18,000 km / h, in order for the meteorite to reach the Earth.
17
Lack of time zones. It is the only continent without time zones. Scientific communities in Antarctica tend to stick to the time that is associated with their native land, or to match the time with a supply line that supplies them with food and essentials. Here you can go through all 24 time zones in a few seconds.
18
Animals of Antarctica. This is the only place on Earth where Emperor penguins can be found. These are the tallest and largest of all penguin species. Emperor penguins are also the only species that breeds during the Antarctic winter, while the Adélie penguin, compared to other species, breeds in the southernmost part of the mainland. Of the 17 penguin species, 6 varieties are found in Antarctica.
Despite the fact that this continent is also hospitable for blue whales, killer whales and fur seals, Antarctica is not rich in land animals. One of the largest life forms here is an insect, the wingless midge Belgica antarctica, about 1.3 cm long. There are no flying insects due to extreme windy conditions. However, black springtails can be found among the colonies of penguins, which jump like fleas. In addition, Antarctica is the only continent that does not have native ant species.
19
Global warming. The largest land mass covered with ice is Antarctica, where 90 percent of the world's ice is concentrated. The average thickness of ice on Antarctica is about 2133 m. If all the ice on Antarctica melts, the world's sea level will rise by 61 m. But the average temperature on the continent is -37 degrees Celsius, so there is no danger of melting yet. In fact, most of the continent will never get above freezing.
For a long time it was believed that Antarctica is the only continent on Earth that does not have constantly flowing rivers. Only in the summer, when snow and ice melt, in the coastal part and in the Antarctic oases, temporary rivers from melt water appear, flowing into the ocean or lakes.
But in some areas, melting and runoff of melt water are observed in fairly large areas and at a considerable height. Particularly large streams have been found on the Ketlitsa Glacier and the McMurdo Ice Shelf, as well as on the Lambert Glacier. So, for example, on the surface of the Lambert Glacier, intensive melting begins at an altitude of 900 meters above sea level at a distance of 450 kilometers from the coast, and the formed streams, replenishing all the time, reach the sea.
McMurdo Glacier
“We used to think that water moved very slowly under the ice,” says Professor Duncan Winham, who led the research team. "But new data shows that these lakes are 'exploding' like a champagne cork popping off, releasing streams that migrate over very long distances."
Underwater rivers are seen on satellite images. Scientists have seen that the ice surface is lower over one of the lakes, but higher than the other two, located 290 kilometers away. They believe that this difference is created by the water flow from one lake to another, and calculated that 1.8 km3 of water moved there in 16 months. “These lakes are like beads, in which the beads are the lakes themselves, connected by a river of water,” Winham says. Scientists believe that when the pressure in one of the lakes increases, the flow of water fills the next bead down the strand.
Lakes in Antarctica are also found mainly on the coast. Like Antarctic streams and rivers, they are very peculiar. In coastal oases, one can count dozens of relatively small lakes. It is interesting that some lakes open up in summer and become free of ice, others never (at least over the past decades) are not freed from the ice cover that bound them, and finally, there are lakes that, despite severe frosts, do not freeze even in the most severe winters. The latter include salt lakes. The water in these lakes is so mineralized that its freezing point is well below zero. Lakes that do not open for many years are found only on the icy continent.
The largest of the Antarctic lakes is Figurnoye Lake in the Bunger oasis.
Bunger Oasis
Bizarrely meandering among the hills, it stretches for 20 kilometers. Its area is 14.7 square kilometers, and the depth exceeds 130 meters. There are several lakes larger than 10 square kilometers in the Victoria Oasis. Lakes up to 8 square kilometers are located in the Vestfold oasis.
Lake Vostok