If Antarctica is surrounded on all sides by water, why is it not considered an island?

 Antarctica is entirely surrounded by water, perfectly fitting the definition of an island. But true continents aren't defined by their oceans—they are defined by sheer scale and ancient rock.

There is no strict, universally agreed-upon size threshold that separates an island from a continent. By geographical convention, Australia is recognized as the smallest continent and Greenland as the largest island. Since Antarctica is almost twice the size of Australia—and nearly seven times the size of Greenland—it easily clears the conventional size requirement. But the more definitive classification lies in the crust itself.

Earth's solid surface is divided into two distinct types of crust: oceanic and continental. Oceanic crust is relatively thin, dense, and composed mostly of basalt. Continental crust is much thicker, more buoyant, and consists primarily of lighter, silica-rich rocks like granite.

True continents are massive platforms of this lighter continental crust. Islands, on the other hand, can be formed in several ways. Some, like Hawaii, are volcanic peaks of oceanic crust poking above the sea. Others, like Greenland or Madagascar, are fragments of continental crust that broke away from larger landmasses.

Antarctica is fundamentally a continent because it is built on a vast, ancient foundation of continental crust. East Antarctica, in particular, is a stable continental shield—a massive block of solid rock that has existed for billions of years. It features its own mountain ranges, deep sedimentary basins, and vast continental shelves.

If you were to instantly melt all the ice covering Antarctica, the resulting sea-level rise would flood the lower elevations. West Antarctica would appear as an archipelago of islands separated by deep water. However, East Antarctica would remain a single, unbroken landmass of high-elevation bedrock, undeniably continental in scale and structure. Its current isolation in the Southern Ocean is simply the result of tectonic drift after it tore away from the ancient supercontinent of Gondwana.

An orthographic projection of Antarctica constructed from satellite imagery. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

Do we know what the actual land of Antarctica would look like if all the ice was gone?

 

This map was created by using a combination of radar echo data, satellite data, and existing maps of ice free areas of Antarctica.

Red is peaks and green is land that’s just above the current average sea level. Light blue is what would be shallow seas.

As you can see, Antarctica is mostly a continental shelf with an archipelago of islands that rise above sea level. The water between the islands is relatively shallow, so it’s a bit like the shelf New Zealand sits on.

What's strange about Antarctica?

 During my visit to Antarctica with scientists, I learned several interesting facts.

• Lake Vostok is a freshwater lake in Antarctica that lies submerged beneath 2.5 miles (4 km) of frozen water. It is about the same size as Lake Ontario and larger than all but one lake in Europe.

• I've traveled to all seven continents, but Paradise Bay was the only place I've ever been that was completely silent. It was as if I had lost my hearing. No sound could be heard by the human ear, a truly breathtaking sight.

• Deep Lake contains 10 times more salt than the average ocean, so it never freezes even at -4°F (minus 20°C).

• There are 11 people born in Antarctica. As of 2020, the oldest is 45 years old. Since there are no citizens in Antarctica, they have the nationality of their parents.
• The Antarctic continent is divided into 11 time zones. The Antarctic Peninsula, a popular tourist destination, is only one hour behind New York City during daylight saving time. On the other hand, Antarctica itself is 16 hours behind New York City during daylight saving time. These two time zones are relatively close near the South Pole, and crossing this line results in a 15-hour time jump.

• I saw an iceberg larger than a soccer stadium; this massive piece of ice, which once separated from Antarctica, was roughly the same size as the state of Connecticut in the United States (or Montenegro in Europe).

• The coldest temperature ever recorded in the world was -128.6 °F (minus 89.2 °C) in Antarctica. Researchers in Antarctica frequently experience temperatures of -100°F, a temperature at which human skin instantly feels pain upon contact with the air. Even laughing is painful, saliva freezes before it touches the ground, and you can hear the sound of your breath freezing in the air in front of your face.

What are some lesser known facts about Antarctica?

 The Future Antarctica

Antarctica is Earth's southernmost continent. It contains the geographic South Pole and is situated in the Antarctic region of the Southern Hemisphere, almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle, and is surrounded by the Southern Ocean. At 14,000,000 square kilometres (5,400,000 square miles), it is the fifth-largest continent. For comparison, Antarctica is nearly twice the size of Australia. About 98% of Antarctica is covered by ice that averages 1.9 km (1.2 mi; 6,200 ft) in thickness, which extends to all but the northernmost reaches of the Antarctic Peninsula.

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Now coming to some of the information that I gathered from various websites about Antarctica

• You cannot work in Antarctica unless your wisdom teeth and appendix are removed. (Appears to me that your very wise, wisdom teeth could not hang out with your other stupid teeth . LOL)

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• Antarctica is also the world’s driest place.

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• Antarctica has its own domain .aq

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• 53 million years ago, palm trees were growing along its shores.

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• Metallica played a gig in Antarctica called Freeze ‘Em All

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• There used to be a nuclear power station in Antarctica.

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• The existence of Antarctica was completely unknown until 1820, it was considered to be just a group of islands.

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• Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen was the first human to reach the South Pole on December 14, 1911.

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• The Transantarctic Mountains of Antarctica divide the continent into East and West sections.

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• Deep Lake in Antarctica is so salty that it cannot freeze, even in temperatures as low as -4° F.

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I'll be adding more facts and amazing pictures for you awesome guys and gals based on the response.

Source:-Antarctica - Wikipedia

15 interesting facts about Antarctica

20 Facts You Never Knew About Antarctica

What are a few interesting facts about Antarctica?

 1. Antarctica is the largest desert in the world

2. And it is the only continent without reptiles.

3. The coldest point on Earth is the summit of a high mountain in Antarctica, where temperatures reach an incredible -93.2ºC.

4. Some parts of the continent have not had rain or snow for the last 2 million years

5. There is a waterfall that turns red like blood

6. The entire place only has one ATM

7. 90% of all the world's fresh water is in Antarctica

8. You can only work on the icy continent if you have already had your wisdom teeth and appendix removed.

9. There are no polar bears in Antarctica – but there sure are plenty of penguins

10. It is the only continent not divided by time zones.

11. It is also the driest, windiest, coldest and highest continent in the world.

12. Melting polar ice caused a small change in local gravity

13. Chile has a civilian city with a school, hospital, hostel, post office, internet, TV and telephone signal coverage.

14. Antarctica's ice sheet has existed for at least 40 million years.

15. There are 300 lakes under Antarctica that don't freeze due to the heat from the Earth's core.

16. The highest temperature ever recorded there was a “scorching” 14.5ºC

17. Mount Erebus is the southernmost active volcano in the world. Interestingly, in addition to lava, it expels oroclase crystals.

18. Antarctica was once as hot as the cities on our northeastern coast

19. There are at least 7 Christian churches there.

20. A scientist once got a Tinder date with a girl who was camping just 45 minutes away from where he was.

21. Less than 1% of the continent is not covered by ice

22. The largest iceberg ever measured there was bigger than Jamaica! It measured 11 thousand square kilometers.

23. The average thickness of the ice sheet is 1.6 km

24. In 1977, Argentina sent a pregnant woman to Antarctica in an effort to claim part of the continent. The boy became the only human to be born there.

25. Winds can reach 320 km/h in some places