It is a land with little soil, where 96% of its mass is covered in ice, with no indigenous people, no indigenous government. No economic activity exists, except for that in small isolated encampments of scientists and from the incursion of tourism to the island continent. Antarctica is a land of many superlatives. It is the driest place on earth, it is the coldest. Its land mass forms the largest desert on the planet. Its average precipitation is the lowest anywhere, and its mean elevation the highest of any other continent. It is the southernmost continent, its 14 million square miles almost entirely contained within the Antarctic circle, 620 miles south of the coast of South America. It is the windiest place on earth, the most remote. It has no time zone, since all time zones converge in its interior. There are no non-indigenous animals – no dogs, cats or other pets – as a matter of treaty. Over the continent, an atmospheric anomaly – a giant hole in the earth’s ozone layer. Learn more about this wondrous destination!