Knowledge Maniac

  Perhaps one of the most captivating and mystical places on earth – particularly given how recently it was discovered – scientists throughout the last few centuries have worked hard to help us understand more about the seventh continent. While it remains a place of unique wildlife and stark, inhospitable stretches of ice where much is still unknown, what we do know is utterly fascinating.    Therefore, here is our list of the ten most interesting facts about Antarctica. #10 Roald Amundsen was first to reach the South Pole The Norwegian explorer arrived at the South Pole on December 14 in 1911. Of course, there might be others back in history, but Roald Amundsen’s trip to the South Pole is the first successful exploration recorded. #09 Antarctica Is the Coldest, Windiest and Driest Continent Despite all its ice, Antarctica is technically a desert, because of the low precipitation levels. The inner regions receive an average of 2 inches (5...

Location of the Mariana Trench The Mariana Trench or Marianas Trench is located in the western Pacific Ocean about 200 kilometres east of the Mariana Islands, and has the deepest natural trench in the world. It is a crescent-shaped trough in the Earth's crust averaging about 2,550 km long and 69 km wide. The maximum known depth is 10,994 metres at the southern end of a small slot-shaped valley in its floor known as the Challenger Deep. #10 Who has explored it?          The   HMS Challenger expedition   (1873 to 1876) was the first to sample hadal depths – having collected sediment from about 8 km – although it could not confirm whether or not the sediment was merely the remnants of shallower animals. The 1901   Princess Alice   expedition   successfully trawled specimens from over 6 km. However, it was a 1948   Swedish expedition, which successfully trawled a variety of species from 7 km to 8...