Antarctica
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The land borders of Antarctica – the South Pole

Eleven boundary lines meet in one single point at only one place in the world – the Geographic South Pole located near the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station. The approximate boundary drawn on the photo above is according to the pole's situation of January 2005. The UK, France, Australia, New Zealand and Norway all recognize each others' claims, which do not overlap. About 50 Antarctic Treaty member states have signed the treaty which in its Article 4 says "the treaty does not recognize, dispute, nor establish territorial sovereignty claims; no new claims shall be asserted while the treaty is in force".

The Geographic South Pole is marked by a small sign and a stake in the ice pack, which are repositioned each year on New Year's Day to compensate for the movement of the ice. The sign records the respective dates that Roald Amundsen and Robert F. Scott reached the Pole, followed by a short quotation from each man and gives the elevation as 2,835 m (9,301 ft). (Source: Wikipedia.)

Seven countries; Norway (20°W – 44°38E), Australia (44°38'E – 136°11'E and 142°2'E –160°E), France (136°11'E – 142°2'E), New Zealand (160°E – 150°W), Chile (90°W – 53°W), United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (80°W – 20°W) and Argentina (74°W – 25°W) have territorial claims on parts of the Antarctida. The three last claims are overlapping each other. It is a common misunderstanding that  the northern and southern borders of Norway's claim are not officially defined, but they span from the South Pole to 60° south as the other sectors. 

The South Pole is the only undecapoint in the world, as eleven borderlines meet in one single point. These boundaries are the only dry borderlines which in relations to building and infrastructure on the map constantly are changing because the South Pole ice sheet is constantly moving (about 9 metres per year).The geographic pole on the map above was at January 2005. (Click on the image for a high resolution image.) (Image: Wikipedia)

One part of Antarctida, Marie Byrd Land, and some islands near the coast are not claimed by any country. (This is not unique – there is another territory (in Africa) which neither is claimed by any state.) (Image: Wikipedia)

Norway and Australia, two countries with their mainlands located on the opposite side of the globe of each other, have both territories on the Antarctida which share an about 2460 km long common boundary (AUNO). Norway's "capital" in Queen Maud Land is Troll Station (year-round run), while Australia's "capital" in the Australian Antarctic Division is Davis Station. (Image: Wikipedia)

This page was last time updated on 22.11.10