Antarctica’s Dry Valleys

Vacation to Mars: Antarctica’s Dry Valleys

Most of Antarctica has about 2 1/2 miles of ice covering it, and that cold, white wasteland is what most people picture when they think of the South Pole. But a series of dry valleys in Antarctica, about 4,000 kilometers square, have no ice on them at all. The moisture is sucked from the dry valleys by a rain shadow effect — winds rushing over them at speeds up to 200/mph — leaving a bizarre and fascinating landscape, which looks more like Mars than the rest of our planet.

I came across this while looking around on the net.. i think its beautiful how landscapes like this can exist on earth..

also, sorry if this has been posted before, i did some searches on this site, but nothing came up on the topic

I learn something new everyday. I always thought it was completely covered in ice. I had no idea there was dry land like that. Thanks for the info.

no post about the Dry Valleys can go without a link to the infamous Blood Falls:

news.nationalgeographic.com...

For decades researchers have been intrigued by Blood Falls, which incongruously spills from one of the driest parts of Antarctica, the aptly named Dry Valleys.

"The Dry Valleys are all brown," said study leader Jill Mikucki of Dartmouth College.

"You might see some white ice and blue skies—and then here's this bright red waterfall. It invokes a lot of curiosity."