The South Pole

​ Scientists have known for some time that the South Pole Ice Sheet formed around 14 million years ago, "but we didn't know how it formed" they said…

It all began hundreds and thousands summers ago…by a Giant who was sensitive to the heat and loved to drink iced water in summer.

One hot day he was working on a field and got thirsty so he collected all the ice he could find from the giant fridge in his house and put it in a glass filled with water. When he walked out of his house, he suddenly saw a beautiful woman standing in the distance.

Curiously he walked closer to the woman thinking that perhaps he could offer her his icy cold glass of water. As the woman turned to face him, he realized the woman was a monster with three eyes so he started to run away.

"Run for your life! Run for your life! Or the monster'll get all your ice!" He ran and ran forgetting all about the big glass of ice he was holding. He just continued running and running and running. As he ran the ice spilled on the ground; the biggest chunk formed a mountain of ice when people come and see it they are so surprised.

The next day, the ice mountain started to melt. It kept melting and melting…and melting all summer and the melted ice flew down onto the ground.

When winter came the water got frozen and formed a whole field of ice that may look small for the giant but enormous for mice. He had six months of fun before the Giant's land tilted toward the sun.

The days became longer and longer…and longer until it was light all day long even at midnight when the sun never sets. The ice mountain started to melt again, making the water flood all over the ground.

Then the days became shorter and shorter…and shorter…until it was completely dark at midday when the sun never rises. Another ice sheet started to form. This continued for six months while the Giant's land tilted away from the sun.

...

Thousands of years have passed and ice sheets built up. The monster has gone – perhaps she herself was scared by the Giant so she had moved somewhere else. The Giant was no longer there, but you can still see traces of him everywhere - some on the ground, some extended onto the sea so penguins can rest on, and some floated on the sea as icebergs….