Antarctica is the Earth's southernmost continent. It contains the geographic South Pole and is situated in the Antarctic region of the Southern Hemisphere. It is surrounded by the Southern Ocean. At 14,000,000 square kilometres (5,400,000 square miles), it is the fifth-largest continent. For comparison, Antarctica is nearly twice the size of Australia. About 98% of Antarctica is covered by ice that averages 1.9 km (1.2 mi; 6,200 ft) in thickness. Antarctica contains 90 per cent of the worlds ice.

Antarctica, on average, is the coldest, driest, and windiest continent, and has the highest average elevation of all the continents. The temperature in Antarctica has reached −89.2 °C (−128.6 °F) (or even −94.7 as measured from space[8]). Anywhere from 1,000 to 5,000 people reside throughout the year at the research stations scattered across the continent.

Antarctica is noted as the last region on Earth in recorded history to be discovered and colonised by humans, unsighted until 1820 when an Russian expedition sighted the Fimbul ice shelf. In 1895, the first confirmed landing was conducted by a team of Norwegians.

Antarctica is governed by parties to the Antarctic Treaty System that have consulting status. Twelve countries signed the Antarctic Treaty in 1959, and thirty-eight have signed it since then. The treaty prohibits military activities and mineral mining, prohibits nuclear explosions and nuclear waste disposal, supports scientific research, and protects the continent's ecozone. Ongoing experiments are conducted by more than 4,000 scientists from many nations.

I am traveling to Antarctica in November aboard a Norwegian Ship - the MS Midnatsol. Not only am I looking forward to my adventure in Antarctica, but also the crossing of the Drake Passage which is a part of the Southern Ocean between the bottom on South America and the Antarctica Peninsula - this will be an adventure all its own. Here is a description of this passage, from a passenger on the MS Midnatsol - " We set sail and headed for the Drake Passage, a 500-mile-wide channel of ocean famous for its rough weather. We tried to make a landing at Cape Horn but were not successful. Take motion sickness pills. We had 40 foot seas and 70 knot winds. This qualified as a hurricane. We have a certificate from the ship to prove it. I never felt unsafe but stayed off the open decks".