If the Antarctic ice sheet melted, the sea level around the world would rise about 220 feet (67 meters), the height of a 20-story building.
About 90 percent of the world’s ice is held in that ice sheet.
The large volume of ice on the continent of the Antarctic stores around 70% of the world’s fresh water.
According to NASA, the most significant Antarctic surface melting of the past 30 years occurred in 2005, when an area of ice as large as California briefly melted and refroze.
Most of the ice in Antarctica is formed because the south pole receives relatively little solar radiation.
Sea ice around Antarctica is formed from and floats in the ocean and does not contribute to rise in sea level.
