库佛维尔岛附近的蓝色冰山，南极洲 Blue icebergs near Cuverville Island, Antarctica (© Mike Hill/Getty Images)

库佛维尔岛附近的蓝色冰山，南极洲 Blue icebergs near Cuverville Island, Antarctica (© Mike Hill/Getty Images)

Antarctica Day

At just over 600 miles from the tip of South America, Cuverville Island is closer to civilization than most of Antarctica. As such, this small isle off the northward-jutting Antarctic Peninsula is a hotspot for tourists to catch some cool scenery (while freezing their butts off, of course). Visitors can also chill on the rocky beach with the locals: a glut of gentoo penguins whose rookery here is the largest along the peninsula.

Today we're observing Antarctica Day, which commemorates the signing of the Antarctic Treaty on December 1, 1959. In the treaty, 12 of the world's most powerful nations agreed to dedicate Earth's southernmost continent to science—any military activity there was banned. It was the first arms control agreement established during the Cold War. It still stands 62 years later as an important landmark in global relations and has expanded to include 54 countries.

南极日

库弗维尔岛距离南美洲尖端仅600多英里，比南极洲大部分地区更接近文明。因此，这座位于南极半岛北部的小岛是游客们欣赏凉爽风景的热点（当然，他们的屁股也会被冻掉）。游客还可以和当地人一起在岩石海滩上乘凉：这里有大量的gentoo企鹅，它们的鸟巢是半岛上最大的。

今天我们庆祝南极日，纪念1959年12月1日南极条约的签署。在该条约中，世界上12个最强大的国家同意将地球最南端的大陆用于科学研究，禁止任何军事活动。这是冷战期间达成的第一项军备控制协议。62年后，它仍然是全球关系中的一个重要里程碑，并已扩大到包括54个国家。