A pole of inaccessibility is the most distant point from a coastline, landmass, or access route. These places are extremely hard to reach and often located in vast deserts, frozen oceans, or deep within continents, far from civilization.

Defined by geography, poles of inaccessibility are calculated as the center of the largest possible circle that can fit within a landmass or ocean, without touching the coast. Their locations can shift due to improved mapping or ice sheet movement.

The northern and southern poles of inaccessibility lie in the Arctic and Antarctic, respectively, and are defined as the most remote points from any coastline in those regions, often on drifting ice or deep within icy plateaus.

The oceanic pole of inaccessibility, known as Point Nemo, is the spot in the ocean farthest from any land, located in the remote South Pacific. These poles represent some of the most isolated and least accessible places on Earth, each offering unique challenges to explorers and scientists.

Continental poles of inaccessibility are points on land farthest from any ocean. These remote locations are calculated based on continental shape and coastline data, with exact coordinates subject to variation due to updated mapping.

The northern pole of inaccessibility lies on constantly shifting Arctic Ocean pack ice, making permanent access nearly impossible. It’s the point farthest from land in the Arctic and was recalculated in 2013 due to better satellite mapping.

Located at 85°48′N 176°9′W, it’s about 1,008 km from Ellesmere Island, Komsomolets Island, and Henrietta Island. Earlier estimates placed it farther south, but new data refined the true location, correcting past expeditions’ destinations.

Sir Hubert Wilkins attempted to reach the original location by air in 1927. In 1941, a Soviet team unknowingly reached the real pole. Later, explorer Wally Herbert traveled there by dogsled in 1968, unaware that the exact coordinates were inaccurate.

In 1986, Soviet scientist Dmitry Shparo led an expedition that reached the pole on foot during the polar night. Jim McNeill also attempted to reach it in 2006 but declared that the exact point had never been reached by a surface team.

The southern pole of inaccessibility is Antarctica’s most landlocked point, farthest from any coast. Due to ice movement and coastline definition, its exact position varies depending on the criteria used to calculate it.

The best-known site is at 82°06′S 54°58′E, where the Soviet Union built a temporary station in 1958. It lies 878 km from the South Pole, at an elevation of 3,718 m. A Lenin bust still marks the site, facing Moscow, buried beneath snow.

Other calculated poles include 82°53′14″S 55°04′30″E (land-only) and 83°50′37″S 65°43′30″E (with ice shelves), considered the most accurate modern estimates. British Antarctic Survey confirmed these coordinates in 2005.

In 2005, Spanish explorers Ramón Hernando de Larramendi, Juan Manuel Viu, and Ignacio Oficialdegui were the first to reach both modern coordinates. Their 4,500 km kite-powered trek set the record for the fastest polar journey without engines.

In 2007, Team N2i reached the old Soviet base using man-hauling and kite skiing, rediscovering the Lenin bust after nearly 50 years. They were picked up by plane and returned to Cape Town by the research vessel Akademik Fyodorov.

In 2011, Sebastian Copeland and Eric McNair-Landry reached the Soviet station location without resupply or mechanical aid, completing a historic East–West crossing of Antarctica that included both the South Pole and pole of inaccessibility.

Despite changing definitions, the Soviet base remains the most recognized southern pole of inaccessibility. For logistical and symbolic reasons, it is the fixed point used in record-setting expeditions and Guinness World Records listings.

Point Nemo is the oceanic pole of inaccessibility, the spot in the ocean farthest from any land. It lies in the South Pacific at 48°52.6′S 123°23.6′W, 2,688 km from the nearest islands: Ducie, Motu Nui, and Maher.

Named after Jules Verne’s Captain Nemo, it’s so remote that the closest humans are often aboard the International Space Station. It was featured in H.P. Lovecraft’s story The Call of Cthulhu, as the fictional city of R’lyeh’s location.

This area is nicknamed the “spacecraft cemetery” because it’s used to dispose of satellites and space stations. Its remote location reduces the risk of debris hitting ships or populated areas during controlled reentry missions.

Point Nemo is one of the most lifeless regions on Earth. The surrounding South Pacific Gyre lacks nutrients, and its isolation from land limits biological productivity, making it a marine desert in both geography and ecology.

The Eurasian pole lies in northwestern China near Kazakhstan, in the Dzoosotoyn Elisen Desert. Earlier measurements placed it 2,645 km from the sea at 46°17′N 86°40′E, roughly 320 km north of Ürümqi, in the Xinjiang Autonomous Region.

Nearby settlements include Hoxtolgay Town (50 km NW), Xazgat Township (20 km W), and Suluk (10 km E). This desert region is extremely dry, sparsely populated, and geographically isolated from the closest oceanic access points.

A 2007 study proposed alternative points: EPIA1 at 44.29°N 82.19°E and EPIA2 at 45.28°N 88.14°E. These are both slightly closer to the sea than earlier estimates, but still represent some of the most remote inland spots on Earth.

Both lie near the Dzungarian Gate, a strategic pass between East and West. EPIA2 is near K̂as K̂îr Su, in the Karamgay Township, Burultokay County, within the region locally called K̂îzîlk̂um (قىزىلقۇم), part of historic migration routes.

In Ürümqi County, a monument marks the “center of Asia” at 43°40′52″N 87°19′52″E. Installed in the 1990s, it’s a tourist attraction that commemorates the region’s central location on the vast Eurasian continent.

Interestingly, the radius to the ocean from EPIA1 and EPIA2 is only about 178 km less than Point Nemo’s distance to land. Both oceanic and continental poles are equally extreme in remoteness, despite their opposite geographic conditions.

North America’s pole of inaccessibility lies in southwest South Dakota on the Pine Ridge Reservation, about 11 km north of the town of Allen. It is 1,650 km from the nearest ocean, located at 43.36°N 101.97°W in the central U.S.

In Canada, a similar point lies at Jackfish River, Alberta (59.03°N 112.82°W), just upstream from its junction with the Peace River. It’s one of the country’s most remote river crossings, deep within Alberta’s forested wilderness.

South America’s pole is in Brazil at 14.05°S 56.85°W, near Arenápolis in Mato Grosso. It lies deep within the interior, far from both Atlantic and Pacific coasts. The Turner Twins reached this point in 2017 after an inland expedition.

Australia’s inland pole lies about 920 km from the coast at either 23.17°S 132.27°E or 23°2′S 132°10′E. It’s roughly 161 km west-northwest of Alice Springs. The nearest town is Papunya in the Northern Territory, about 30 km to the southwest.

Africa’s pole of inaccessibility is at 5.65°N 26.17°E, in the Central African Republic near the town of Obo. It’s 1,814 km from the nearest coast and close to the country’s tripoint with South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.