A giant of ice at the bottom of the map
Antarctica sits at the very bottom of the globe. It is bigger than the United States and Mexico combined, and almost all of it is covered in ice that can be more than two miles thick. There is no native human population. There are no cities, no farms, and no highways. Only ice, rock, ocean, and a few small research stations where people live for part of the year.
Even though it feels far away, this frozen continent has a huge influence on daily life in the United States. Antarctica helps set sea levels along American coasts. It shapes weather patterns. It supports ocean life that later ends up in global seafood supplies. In other words, what happens in this remote place does not stay there.
The rules of the ice: how the Antarctic Treaty works
Antarctica is not owned by any one country. Several nations have historic territorial claims, but most of the world does not recognize those claims. To prevent conflict, twelve countries met in Washington, D.C., in 1959 and signed the Antarctic Treaty. It came into force in 1961 and has now grown to 58 parties. The United States is a founding signatory and the official depositary of the treaty, which means the core legal document is held in Washington.
The treaty does a few very important things. It reserves the continent for peaceful purposes. It bans military bases and weapons testing. It protects freedom of scientific research. It freezes all territorial claims so that no new land grabs can move forward. Later agreements, called the Antarctic Treaty System, added more tools. These tools include strong environmental rules, protection of plants and animals, and a system for managing tourism and protected areas.
For the United States, this treaty is more than a legal text. It is proof that nations can share a whole continent for science and environmental protection instead of conflict.
How the United States shows up in Antarctica
The U.S. presence in Antarctica is organized through the U.S. Antarctic Program, often called USAP. The National Science Foundation (NSF) runs the program and oversees three main stations on or near the continent.
- McMurdo Station sits on the Ross Sea and is the largest base on the continent. It is a small town of snow, gravel, heavy equipment, labs, and dorms. McMurdo is the main logistical hub. Most American scientists and supplies pass through this station.
- Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station sits right at the geographic South Pole. It supports climate science, ice core drilling, and cutting-edge astronomy.
- Palmer Station is on the Antarctic Peninsula. It is smaller but very important for biology, marine science, and atmospheric research. It is the only U.S. station that ships can routinely reach during the winter months.
These stations are remote and harsh. A recent winter medical evacuation from McMurdo needed a high-risk flight by the New Zealand air force in deep darkness and intense cold, with hot refueling on the ice so the aircraft engines would not freeze. That mission underlined how fragile and demanding this work can be.
Life and work on the ice
Daily life at a U.S. Antarctic station is a mix of science, construction, and survival chores. People work as carpenters, mechanics, heavy equipment operators, cooks, electricians, pilots, IT staff, doctors, and of course researchers. The community must make its own power, clean its own water, and recycle or ship out its own waste.
The science covers many fields. Glaciologists study the ice sheet and track changes in its thickness and movement. Climate scientists drill deep cores to read past temperatures and greenhouse gas levels trapped in bubbles of ancient air. Biologists track penguins, seals, and tiny organisms that live in and under the ice. Astronomers use the clear, dry air at the South Pole to look deep into space.
In other words, Antarctica is one of the best natural laboratories on Earth. The data gathered there feeds into global climate models, sea-level forecasts, and even our understanding of the universe.
A wild world of penguins, whales, and krill
Around the ice-covered land sits the Southern Ocean. This cold ring of water is full of life. Penguins depend on the sea ice for breeding sites and for access to food. Seals haul out on ice floes to rest and raise their pups. Whales travel thousands of miles to feed on rich swarms of small shrimp-like animals called krill.
Krill are tiny, but they anchor the whole Antarctic food web. They eat microscopic algae that grow on and under the ice. Penguins, seals, fish, and whales all eat krill. Recent reporting shows that krill fisheries near Antarctica hit record catches, reaching or even exceeding a 620,000-metric-ton seasonal limit for the 2024–25 season. This surge forced an early closure of the fishery and raised alarms among scientists.
Krill also help pull carbon out of the atmosphere. When they eat algae and later produce waste that sinks, they help move carbon to deeper waters. One estimate suggests Antarctic krill help remove about 20 million tons of carbon per year, much like taking several million cars off the road.
For the United States, any strain on this ecosystem matters. Changes in Antarctic krill stocks can echo through global fisheries and seafood markets that supply American grocery stores and restaurants.
Melting ice and rising seas
Antarctica is home to the largest single mass of ice on Earth. When that ice melts or slides into the ocean, global sea levels rise. NASA satellite data show that Antarctica has been losing ice at an average rate of about 135 billion tons per year since 2002.
Some glaciers, like Pine Island Glacier in West Antarctica, are especially important. Pine Island is the fastest-melting glacier in Antarctica and is responsible for about 13 percent of the continent’s total ice loss. Its drainage area covers about ten percent of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, and it sends more ice to the sea than any other basin on Earth. (Wikipedia)
Scientists estimate that the Antarctic Ice Sheet could raise global sea levels by around 28 centimeters by 2100 under high emissions, and several meters by 2300 in extreme cases. Sea level rise is already accelerating because of combined ice loss from Greenland and Antarctica.
For the United States, higher seas mean more flooding in places like Miami, Norfolk, New Orleans, and many smaller coastal towns. It also means saltwater creeping into wetlands and into drinking-water supplies along low-lying coasts.
Sea ice, tipping points, and strange signals
Antarctica has two main kinds of ice. The big grounded ice sheet sits on land. Seasonal sea ice floats on the ocean and grows each winter, then shrinks each summer. In the past, Antarctic sea ice showed ups and downs but stayed fairly stable. Since 2016, that pattern has broken.
In 2025, Antarctic sea ice reached the third-lowest winter maximum ever recorded, marking three years in a row of record-low or near-record-low ice extent. The maximum in September 2025 was about 900,000 square kilometers below the long-term average.
A separate study in 2025 warned that the rapid loss of Antarctic sea ice may signal a climate tipping point. Once that point is crossed, the system may not return to its old state, even if emissions later fall. Less sea ice means darker ocean water absorbs more sunlight. That feedback warms the region, affects deep ocean circulation, and disrupts habitats for krill and emperor penguins.
Atmospheric rivers and shifting winds have recently brought extra snowfall to parts of Antarctica, causing a short-term gain in ice mass in some years. That gain, however, does not cancel the long-term trend of ice sheet vulnerability and sea-level risk.
Icebergs on the move
From time to time, giant icebergs break off from Antarctica and drift into the Southern Ocean. One of the most famous recent examples is iceberg A23a, once the largest iceberg in the world. It calved from the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf in 1986, sat grounded in the Weddell Sea for decades, then finally broke free and began drifting in 2020.
By 2025, A23a had lost about 80 percent of its mass as warmer waters eroded it. Chunks as large as cities broke away, and the berg drifted near South Georgia Island, where it threatened to block feeding routes for penguins and seals. Scientists used satellite images and ship observations to track the breakup and to study how such events influence nutrient flows, krill populations, and local ecosystems.
These big icebergs serve as moving reminders of a changing climate. They also create navigation hazards for fishing vessels and research ships that support international science, including U.S. projects.
Tourism at the edge of the world
Antarctica once felt like a place that only explorers and scientists could reach. Today, more cruise passengers from the United States and other countries travel south each year. Industry data show strong growth in visitor numbers between the 2023–24 and 2024–25 seasons, with some operators expanding their fleets and marketing campaigns. (Unsold Antarctica)
This rise in tourism has a cost. Recent research on Antarctic contamination found that the growing human footprint, from both tourism and research, is leaving behind pollutants and microplastics. A group of twenty-five scientists urged a faster transition to renewable energy for ships and stations, and stronger rules on waste and fuel use. They argued that self-regulation by the tourism industry is not enough. Negotiations are now under way among Antarctic Treaty parties to create a tighter tourism framework.
For American travelers, this means that a trip to Antarctica is not only an adventure. It is also a responsibility. Every landing, every ship, and every flight adds to local impact and global emissions.
Geopolitics on ice
Antarctica is a place of peace on paper, but it still has strategic value. The continent sits near key sea routes. It holds huge stores of fresh water in its ice and possible mineral resources that remain off limits under current treaties.
U.S. policy on Antarctica has evolved over time. Major policy memos in 1982, 1994, 2020, and 2024 have adjusted priorities around science, environmental protection, and geopolitics. Recent analysis highlights growing competition with China and Russia, including concerns about dual-use research sites, fishing rights, and influence in treaty meetings.
Even so, the Antarctic Treaty System still holds. Countries continue to meet, trade data, and inspect one another’s stations. For the United States, staying engaged means protecting both national interests and the wider idea that some parts of Earth should remain demilitarized and focused on shared science.
White continent, shared responsibility
Antarctica may feel far from the daily rhythm of life in the United States. Yet its ice, oceans, winds, and wildlife are deeply linked to American coasts, weather, food systems, and even long-term economic stability.
The treaty that keeps the continent peaceful was signed in Washington. The largest station on the ice flies the U.S. flag. American scientists help reveal how fast seas may rise, how climate feedbacks may unfold, and how marine ecosystems respond to strain. U.S. tourists stand on rocky beaches among penguins and glaciers. U.S. voters and consumers influence demand for fossil fuels, krill oil, and seafood that touches Antarctic waters. (Antarctic Treaty System)
In other words, Antarctica is not just a blank white shape at the bottom of the map. It is part of a shared system that includes every American street, farm, port, and coastline. The choices made in the United States about energy, conservation, and international cooperation all echo down the globe and across the ice of the southern continent.
