25, May 2012, CEST. Welcome to the beta version of Econ Stats, the Economic Statistics Database service provided by EconomyWatch.com.

Country or Region: Antarctica › Change country
Economic Indicator: Climate and Environment (climate, environmental issues, environmental agreements, natural hazards) › See all Antarctica indicators, › See Climate and Environment (climate, environmental issues, environmental agreements, natural hazards) data for all countries
Detailed Analysis for Year: 2010
Full Dataset: from 1993 to 2008
Dataset updated: 1st August 2011
Data Source: CIA Factbook
National or Regional Currency: Norwegian Krone
Currency Symbol: NOK

Climate: severe low temperatures vary with latitude, elevation, and distance from the ocean; East Antarctica is colder than West Antarctica because of its higher elevation; Antarctic Peninsula has the most moderate climate; higher temperatures occur in January along the coast and average slightly below freezing

Natural hazards: katabatic (gravity-driven) winds blow coastward from the high interior; frequent blizzards form near the foot of the plateau; cyclonic storms form over the ocean and move clockwise along the coast; volcanism on Deception Island and isolated areas of West Antarctica; other seismic activity rare and weak; large icebergs may calve from ice shelf

Environment - current issues: in 1998, NASA satellite data showed that the Antarctic ozone hole was the largest on record, covering 27 million square kilometers; researchers in 1997 found that increased ultraviolet light passing through the hole damages the DNA of icefish, an Antarctic fish lacking hemoglobin; ozone depletion earlier was shown to harm one-celled Antarctic marine plants; in 2002, significant areas of ice shelves disintegrated in response to regional warming

Environment - international agreements: -