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At the beginning of the Cambrian period, about 540 million years ago, Antarctica (then part of the supercontinent Gondwanaland) was near the equator, and would have had a tropical or subtropical climate. Antarctica had moved close to its current position by the Cretaceous period, but due to warmer currents existing was not encased in ice. Because it would still experience polar day and polar night, it would have had hot summers and brutally cold winters. Several species of dinosaurs, mammals, and amphibians managed to survive here, and the landscape would have been dominated by coniferous forests. The Antarctic did not reach its current level of inhospitableness until about 15 million years ago.

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14y ago

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