2 million years AP

After 2 million years, interior Antarctica remains a wasteland, with virtually no life, due to the presence of a gigantic ice sheet, called The Big White. But something is slowly changing, especially along the coasts.

Due to oceanic influences, coastal temperatures in the upper Antarctic peninsula rarely go over 10-15 °C (50-59 °F), but winter temperatures never go below -20°C (1,4 °F), with mean annual temperatures around 2 °C (35,6 °F). This relatively mild climate is enough to support land fauna during the 3-4 warm months of the year. On the other hand, internal ice-free areas can still reach -40 °C/°F, making them inhospitable all year round.
Krill biomass reduction is still ongoing: many marine species are faciing a slow extinction, while others are shifting towards other types of diet (like the new antarctic kelp forest). Strong interspecific competition is starting to occur, with large cetaceans being the most disadvantaged.

Due to ice sheet retreats and sea-level rise, Antarctica start to break apart into a large sub-continent called Polarica, with several islands, with the largest being Marie Byrd island, which forms the Marie Byrd archipelago.

Do you want to move 8 million years forward? Click here ⋙