Thirty years ago, Antarctica was the haunt primarily of explorers, scientists and their support staff. Very few people had yet had opportunities to visit just to say they had been; the continent was too far away, too cold and too expensive to reach. Now things are different. Antarctica is still far away and still exceedingly cold, but it has become more accessible and known to millions, mainly through television.Antarctica is the world's fifth largest continent. It is not just the snow and ice of popular imagination -- though both are abundant -- but it also has a fascinating wealth of birds and mammals and even plant life. Professor Stonehouse has drawn on more than 50 years experience of Antarctica to produce a guide that will appeal to all. History, geology, wildlife and the environment are here with plenty of jargon-free scientific information and all written in an engaging and refreshing style.