South Pole
Geography and Climate
The South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole or Terrestrial South Pole, is one of the two points where the Earth's axis of rotation intersects its surface. It is the southernmost point on the surface of the Earth and lies on the opposite side of the Earth from the North Pole.
The South Pole is located in the continent of Antarctica, the coldest, driest, and windiest continent. It is covered by a permanent ice sheet that is approximately 2,700 meters (9,000 feet) thick. The South Pole experiences one day and one night each year, with six months of continuous daylight and six months of continuous darkness. The sun rises on the September equinox, reaches its highest point in the sky on the December solstice, and sets on the March equinox.
History of Exploration
The South Pole was first reached by humans on December 14, 1911, by a Norwegian expedition led by Roald Amundsen. The first successful British expedition, led by Robert Falcon Scott, arrived a month later, but all five members of the party died on the return journey.
Scientific Research
The South Pole is home to the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, a United States scientific research station. The station's isolation and extreme weather conditions make it an ideal location for astronomical, atmospheric, and climate research. The IceCube Neutrino Observatory, a particle detector located at the South Pole, is used to study neutrinos, subatomic particles that can provide information about the universe's most violent phenomena.