QUESTION: 
How much of Antarctica is covered with ice?  

        Sierra
        Sunnie Tait, Librarian/Media Specialist
        Wines Elementary
        Ann Arbor, Mi



ANSWER from Deane Rink, PTK Field Producer, Palmer Station
            Tue, 11 Feb 1997 15:05:58 -0500
            
Dear Sierra,

Over 97% of Antarctica is covered with ice, ice that averages 2160 
meters (or over a mile) thick.  This is 90% of the world's ice, and 
70% of the world's fresh water.  The other 2.4% of Antarctica is 
composed of ice-free land, either on the peninsula, or in the dry 
valleys that exist where the continent meets the southern oceans.  
these ice-free zones exist because mountain ranges prevent the ice 
from flowing into these coastal areas.  Many of the most well-known 
dry valleys exist across McMurdo Sound from the largest American 
research station, McMurso, on Ross Island.

Deane Rink
LFA-2 Field Producer