Arctic

The Arctic (Land of the Midnight Sun\) is the area around the earth's North Pole while antarctic is in South Pole. It includes parts of Russia, Alaska, Canada, Greenland, Lapland and Svalbard as well as the Arctic Ocean.

image:arctic.jpg
The red line indicates the 10°C isotherm in July, commonly used to define the arctic region border.

The Arctic Circle is one of the five major circles of latitude that mark maps of the Earth.

Everything north of this circle is known as the Arctic, and the zone just to the south of this circle is the Northern Temperate Zone.

This is the parallel of latitude that runs approximately 66.5° north of the Equator. Within the Arctic Circle, the arctic Sun is above the horizon for, at least, 24 continuous hours per year, in conjunction with the arctic's Summer Solstice. Likewise, in conjunction with the arctic's Winter Solstice, the arctic sun will be below the horizon for, at least, 24 continuous hours.

Etymology

The name arctic comes from the ancient Greek αρκτος, meaning 'bear', and is a reference to the constellations of the Great Bear and Little Bear, which are located near the North Star (which is actually part of the Little Bear).

Reference

WordReference.com Dictionary. Etymology.
CIA World Factbook 2002 - Arctic Region. Large version of the arctic region map.