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How thick is the ice that covers Antarctica?

The ice that covers Antarctica reaches a maximum thickness of 15,700 feet (4,785 meters), nearly 3 miles. This is about ten times taller than the Sears Tower in Chicago, the tallest building in the United States. The average thickness of ice in Antarctica is 7,100 feet (2,164 meters), about 1 miles.

Source: World Book Encyclopedia, vol. 1, pp. 530, 532.

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1. Characteristics
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