Re: Why is the antarctic colder than the arctic?

Dear No Name Entered (I wonder who you are),

The answer is because water holds more heat than land. Antarctica is a 
large continent roughly cenetered at the South Pole. At the North Pole, the 
equivalent area is occupied by the Arctic Ocean. When the summer sun shines 
on the ocean, it absorbs some heat, and ocean currents also bring in some 
heat from other regions of the oceans. The Arctic Ocean then realeases this 
heat through the darkness of winter, helping to moderate the climate, just 
as cities along the seacoasts generally have more moderate climates than 
cities in the interior of continents.

Paul Odgren
Cell Biology
UMass. Medical School