남극산책

Abstract

In 2006, Kyung-Nam Koh spent a year at King Sejong Station in Antarctica. This book is a reflection on his experience of life in that unique environment.

A Dictator in Antarctica A blizzard is an intense snow storm with wind at a speed of over 13 meters a second and visibility dropping below 200 meters. When a blizzard occurs, even warmer temperatures on a thermometer become meaningless. All outside activities are suspended, and darkness fills the world.

A Way of Life in Antarctica The most commonly seen living creatures near King Sejong Station are penguins. There is a penguin village nearby where thousands of penguins live together. These penguins must be vigilant against skuas, an Antarctic bird which will tear a baby penguin to pieces to feed its young. Baby penguins also die by freezing to death and even in some cases by being crushed to death in their nests. When this happens, because decomposition is inhibited by the intense cold, the dead penguin's remains dry up and become part of the nest. Thus death in this stark landscape helps life to continue.

Superb Views of Antarctica If you look all around in Antarctica, there is only ice. Ice is not static but flows slowly over many years. This huge flow is called a glacier. When the glacier reaches the sea, the front part breaks away. This leaves a cross-section at the end of the glacier called an ice cliff. If the glacial mass that broke away is big, it is called an iceberg. If it is small, it is called an ice floe. Even one small lump of ice floating in the ocean contains thousands of years of time. Standing in front of it, one is struck by how short a human life span seems in comparison.