“South” means warm temperatures to most Americans. This changes when the yardstick includes the southernmost city in the world because it is relatively close to the continent of Antarctica. The region, which was once by far the coldest on earth, has started to warm. Last year, according to the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), the new record high temperature for Antarctica was 65 degrees F.
The continent closest to Antarctica is South America, particularly at its southern tip which includes parts of Argentina and Chile. These areas, southwest of the Falkland Islands, have little population. Argentina and Chile have vied to be home to the southernmost city in the world. Recently, Chile took the lead as it named Puerto Williams as a city. Previously, Ushuaia in Argentina held the spot as the southernmost city on Earth Chile did not exactly cheat, but Puerto Williams was not called a city before May 2019.
Puerto Williams started as a town in 1953 and became a base for the Chilean Navy. Over time, it has become a tourist destination, and home to scientific communities because of its proximity to Antarctica.
For the most part, Puerto Williams posts low daily temperatures throughout almost the entire year. Over 12 months, temperatures usually run between 50 degrees F and 5 degrees F. Global warming could change that substantially over the next few decades.
Because the city is so far south, there are very few hours of daylight from May through July.
Click here to read The 22 coldest towns in America
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