Why Don’t Airplanes Fly Over Antarctica?
Although flying over Antarctica could shorten certain flight routes, the frozen continent remains largely off-limits for commercial air travel—and for good reasons.
Marita, a Spanish aviation expert, shared on TikTok why airlines hesitate to fly over Antarctica, which covers approximately 14.2 million square kilometers, making it the fifth-largest continent, even bigger than Europe. So, why don’t airplanes take this shortcut over the vast icy expanse?
In a video, Marita explained that despite advancements in aviation technology, almost no flights pass over Antarctica due to variations in the Earth’s atmospheric thickness. “The layers of the atmosphere are not the same across the planet. Due to the Earth’s rotation, they are thicker at the equator than at the poles,” Marita stated.
According to the pilot, atmospheric thickness directly affects human health, as it protects us from solar radiation. “If airplanes fly through the troposphere, but it is too thin, we will receive more radiation,” she explained. She further noted that, over their career, a pilot is exposed to more radiation than someone working at a nuclear power plant. “We must consider this and try not to expose pilots to excessive radiation,” she added.
Meanwhile, a Google Earth user claims to have discovered a figure resembling an alien face in the snow-covered Antarctic region. A satellite image shared on Reddit has sparked widespread debate, as it appears to show a face with half-closed eyes, a nose, and a mouth in the white snow.
