Cloze: An Overview of Antarctica

Antarctica is one of the two coldest places on Earth. The other, of course, is the Arctic at the top of the planet. Here are some interesting tidbits to consider regarding Antarctica.

1. Antarctica is one and a half ___________________________(1) the size of the United States.
2. The temperature in Antarctica ___________________________(2) always remains below freezing.
3. Antarctica holds roughly one third of ___________________________(3) the fresh water on Earth.
4. No trees ___________________________(4) on Antarctica.
5. Antarctica ___________________________(5) warm for much of the history of Earth.
6. The continent of Antarctica is buried ___________________________(6) 1 mile of snow and ice.
7. At its deepest point, the ice is over 3 miles ___________________________(7) .
8. The largest animal living on Antarctica is a midge, which is less ___________________________(8) a half inch long.
9. The sea around Antarctica, however, is ___________________________(9) of living creatures.
10. Antarctica is ___________________________(10) cold that nothing can rot.
11. In 1983, the lowest temperature ___________________________(11) recorded was on Antarctica: –129 degrees Fahrenheit.
12. Antarctica is ___________________________(12) driest continent on Earth. It receives less than 2 inches of rain a year.
13. It rarely snows in Antarctica. Instead, wind storms blow snow off the surface of the ice, ___________________________(13) creates the impression of snow storms.
14. There ___________________________(14) no native people living on Antarctica.
15. Antarctica does not ___________________________(15) to any country, although a number have made claims. This makes it the only land on the planet not part of a country.

When considering Antarctica, it is striking how barren the land is. If not for a few research stations, the only life would be the occasional penguin coming on land to breed. It is hard to think of any other area so devoid of life on our planet.

Adapted from an article written by Richard Monk

About the author:
Richard Monk is with FactsMonk.com – a site with facts about everything.