Terry Dallas, age 10, of b''ulton, Ky., for the question:

Is there land under the Antarctic ice?

Not so long ago, we thought that Antarctica was a huge, ice covered continent, about 21 times the size of the great state of Texas. Then came the International Geophysical Year and scientists from many nations teamed up to give the vast ice cap a proper physical examination. A11 sorts of new information was discovered and some of our old ideas are out of date..

The IGY scientists found that the ice cap did not rest upon a solid continent. On one side there is a large solid plateau. The other side is a series of islands and mountain chains. Across the center of Antarctica, there is a deep trough. It may be that an arm of the sea runs from side to side, cutting the plateau on one side and mountainous islands on the other side. In any case, the thick, heavy ice rests on top of both land and ice in a solid sheet.