Antarctic Blast

This is a model for a research camp.

The explorers get on these yellow land and water cruisers which we got to ride along a track in. It also had a section of deep water which the truck did float in.

The museum had a room with freezing temperatures and periodic wind storms.

The kids and even Lynn enjoyed the Antarctica simulation with an ice slide.

The US military has a base for Antarctic exploration out of Christ Church right next door to the museum.
We could see the planes parked with ski bottoms ready to go.These planes are pictured landing right on the ice. Sounds better to take the 3 hour flight than a month on an icebreaker boat.

Even Antarctica has a church.

We all enjoyed the museum on Antarctica. Here are some facts we remembered:

1) It's 98% covered with ice which averages 2200 meters THICK and accounts for 70% of the world's fresh water

2) Closest continent to it is South America

3) In winter it is dark for 24 hours a day for 3 whole months. Then in summer the sun never sets for 3 months. It has to do with the tilt of the earth.

4) Anatarctica is 1 1/2 times BIGGER than the whole US and is only partially mapped on the interior

5) Fossils like coal, trees and dinosaur remains means it wasn't allways covered by ice. Some trees buried whole indicate it may have been flooded in a massive flood.

6) It hardly ever gets snow (less than 5 mm a year) even though it is everywhere. It is so dry that dehydration is one of the major risks.

7) Fish live in freezing water by producing a blood antifreeze.

8) Your hair grows twice as fast in Antarctica. Can you imagine us wintering there? We are all already so hairy.

9) Just as there are the Northern Lights visible in Alaska, there are the Southern Lights (or Aurora Australis) visible in Antarctica and in southern New Zealand. The lights appear as luminiscence in the sky during June and July due to atmospheric gases colliding with energized atoms frome the sun...blah,blah, something like that.

10) Hurricane force winds are a regular occurence thus solidifying the museum simulator is as close as I will get. I recommend watching the Disney movie 8 Below for more info.