Antarctic Circle

American  

noun

1. an imaginary line drawn parallel to the equator, at 23° 28prime; N of the South Pole: between the South Frigid Zone and the South Temperate Zone.

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Antarctic Circle British  

noun

1. the imaginary circle around the earth, parallel to the equator, at latitude 66° 32′ S; it marks the southernmost point at which the sun appears above the level of the horizon at the winter solstice

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Antarctic Circle Scientific  

/ ănt-ärk′tĭk /

1. The parallel of latitude approximately 66°33′ south. It forms the boundary between the South Temperate and South Frigid zones.

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Antarctic Circle Cultural  

1. An imaginary circle around the Earth about three-quarters of the way from the equator to the South Pole.

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Discover More

The Antarctic Circle corresponds to the Arctic Circle in the Northern Hemisphere.

Example Sentences

It occurs in winter north of the Arctic Circle and south of the Antarctic Circle, which are circumpolar lines at latitude 66.6 degrees North and South respectively.

From National Geographic • Feb. 1, 2024

Though he’s been working in Antarctica for more than 12 years, he still has some bucket-list dreams, such as crossing the Antarctic Circle on the eastern side of the Antarctic Peninsula.

From Washington Post • Mar. 3, 2022

Sir Ernest Shackleton famously reached the island in 1916, after an epic escape from the icy grip of the Antarctic Circle, and died while docked in Grytviken on 5 January 1922.

From BBC • Jan. 19, 2022

Now it is the Arctic Circle that has the 24-hour night and the Antarctic Circle that has the midnight Sun.

From Textbooks • Oct. 13, 2016

He knew how far they were from the nearest land; he knew when they had crossed the Antarctic Circle; he knew how many miles of forbidding ocean still lay between the crew and their home.

From "Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World" by Jennifer Armstrong