An (Ant)Arctic Struggle: North Pole vs. South Pole
We’re into the darkest days of the year at HQ, but it occurs to us… if we were in the Southern Hemisphere, our days would be long indeed! Were we at the North Pole itself, we would have no sunlight right now at all, but at the South Pole we wouldn’t be able to see any stars but the Sun for a few months.
Of course, the Earth’s poles aren’t just different by being seasonal opposites. It’s time for a VS… where would you rather live?
Team North Pole
- Closest wildlife: polar bears, walruses, foxes, Santa Claus (or, if you were with us last year… werewolves?)
- Not actually found on solid land, so if the ice cap melts all the way, you’ll have to find the pole in the middle of the ocean.
- Possibly visited by human beings on April 6th, 1909, but the first 100% confirmed successful expedition was by Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen on May 12th, 1926.
Team South Pole
- Closest wildlife: penguins, penguins, and more penguins! Also, some seals if you head to the coastline.
- Because the pole is located in Antarctica, it boasts a permanent research station run by the United States. Also a cute pole for photo ops.
- First successfully reached by Roald Amundsen on December 14, 1911, and then shortly after by Englishman Robert Scott’s ultimately doomed crew on January 17, 1912; the runner-up Terra Nova expedition died of starvation and exposure on the way back. Just because the South Pole’s on land… doesn’t make it easy to reach.
Strap on your skis and snowshoes! This polar expedition kicks off at 11:00 AM EST on 12/1 and continues for 24 hours. (If you’re near either pole, we recommend checking a clock for the time, not watching the sky…)
The usual bonuses
Earn 5,000 points – 2,500 bonus
Earn 15,000 points – 5,000 bonus
Earn 25,000 points – 10,000 bonus
For every 25,000 points above 25,000 – 5,000 bonus
Member of winning team (if you’ve scored at least 2,500 points) – 10,000 bonus
Highest scorer on each team – 5,000 bonus
Player with #1 overall score – 10,000 bonus
Player with #2 overall score – 5,000 bonus
Player with #3 overall score – 2,500 bonus
Artwork by Grace Emmet