The Antarctic Environment

The Geography of Antarctica

In this course, Professor Mike Bentley (Durham University) explores the physical environments, ecosystems and governance of Antarctica. In the first module, we consider some key aspects of the continent’s physical geography, including its climate, landforms, and the importance of its ice sheet. The second module then looks at the marine and terrestrial ecosystems of Antarctica, how species have adapted to its unique conditions, and the impacts of human activity on Antarctic organisms. In the third module, we turn to the relationship between Antarctica and climate change, both in terms of the importance of Antarctica and the Southern Ocean in regulating the global climate, and the negative impacts for the region of global warming. We conclude with a fourth module on the unique way Antarctica is governed under the Antarctic Treaty, and how the impacts of three sets of human activities - scientific research, tourism and fishing - are managed and limited.

The Antarctic Environment

In this module, we introduce Antarctica and its physical environment, focusing on: (i) its unique climate - it is both the coldest and the driest continent - and the main factors which cause this; (ii) the central importance of the ice sheet in shaping the Antarctic environment, and how it is influenced by subglacial topography; (iii) ice sheet processes and components, including ice sheet flow and ice streams, the formation of ice shelves on the ocean surface, and the calving of ice bergs; (iv) Antarctica’s subglacial lakes, notably Lake Vostok, and the search for life within them; (v) landforms created by the flow of the Antarctic ice sheet, including nunataks, sastrugi and crevasses; (vi) ice-free areas of Antarctica, such as the McMurdo Dry Valleys, in terms of where and how they form and their characteristics.