Many geography lovers are interested in the question, on which continent there are no rivers? After a little reflection, we can recall that there are definitely rivers in Africa, Asia, Europe, in the territory of both Americas and even in Australia, although it is mostly a hot wasteland, there are seventy rather long rivers. One option remains - Antarctica.
Which continent has no rivers?
Given the fact that 99% of the surface of Antarctica is covered by a glacier whose thickness exceeds one and a half kilometers, the absence of rivers and lakes on the mainland may seem obvious. However, this is not quite true.
Answering the question about on which continent there are absolutely no rivers and lakes, it is worth saying that such a continent does not exist, but at the same time make a few reservations. The first important point in the following is that there really are no permanent rivers in Antarctica, but in some areas of the Earth that are more favorable for life, rivers appear only in the rainy season.
On the ice-covered mainland, rivers appear only in the warmest time by Antarctic standards and, as a rule, represent a flow of meltwater from the outskirts of glaciers. Such rivers have a characteristic rapid flow and carry quite large volumes of water.
Thus, it becomes clear on which continent there are no rivers, at least not permanent. However, it is worth telling about seasonal rivers.
Melt water of Antarctica
Despite the fact that more than seventy percent of the planet’s fresh water reserves are stored in the eternal glaciers of the Antarctic, the continent’s climate is arid. In some areas, no more than ten centimeters of precipitation falls annually, and some windy areas of the mainland have been deprived of precipitation for many centuries.
In such harsh conditions, even the smallest meltwater flows, of which there are seven in Antarctica, draw attention to themselves. Most of them are of small length, and in other circumstances they could be ignored. However, in the harsh conditions of the Antarctic, these streams also matter.
The shortest meltwater stream is called Luzon Creek, and its length does not exceed four hundred meters. At the same time, the longest temporary river reaches a length of forty kilometers.
The Onyx River, being the longest in Antarctica, is an example of a drainage reservoir, that is, it connects two lakes located on different edges of the Wright Valley. Of course, no fish are found in this river, but there is a very diverse life of more primitive creatures in it.
Ice lakes
Having figured out the answer to the question on which continent there are no rivers, we can proceed to the question of the presence of lakes in Antarctica. As it has already become clear, in the climatic conditions of the southern continent neither permanent rivers nor surface lakes can exist, but the enormous thickness of the Antarctic ice creates favorable conditions for the formation of lakes in the ice mass.
The most significant lake in volume of the continent is the East, which got its name from the eponymous scientific station located nearby. The lake is located at a depth of about four kilometers under the ice, and its length reaches two hundred and fifty kilometers with a width of about fifty kilometers.
According to scientists, there can be life in a lake, because its water is rich in oxygen, and its temperature reaches ten degrees above zero. Thus, in answering the question of which continent there are no rivers and lakes, it is worth pointing out the special conditions in which the continent exists. Given the radical differences of this continent from others, it is not surprising that all the concepts of geography are applicable to it with only a few reservations.