The coldest places on earth today are the polar region and some of the high mountain regions such as the Himalayas, the Alps, the Andes, the Rocky Mountains, the Atlas Mountain, the Hindukush mountain range, the Urals. The temperature in these areas is freezing and can make human inhabitation impossible at times. Despite the adverse weather condition, people are living in these regions. For centuries, people have battled cold weather conditions to find sustenance on a routine basis.
The North Pole and South Pole have been conquered by human beings long back. In the North Pole, most of the water is frozen all the time and human habitation is not found. Only ice breaker ships take people to North Pole on tourist expeditions. Otherwise, wild life such as polar bears, seals and aquatic life is found in plenty in the North Pole, which is not fit for human habitation. Similarly, in the South Pole, a lot of birds can be found. Countries have set up bases, which are occupied by people round the year despite the frigid conditions. Both north and south poles are not hospitable and adverse weather conditions are found to have had negative impact on human beings.
In the beginning, conquering the Polar Regions was not an easy task. It was only after several expeditions by adventurers that both the poles were conquered. They took a toll on the human life naturally. Both the poles fall under the tundra region, divided geographically.
The tundra region poses extreme weather conditions. Though vegetation is found in this region sparsely, practicing agriculture is literally impossible. The weather does not support cultivation or growing crops. In these regions, the only way a person can lead a livelihood is to adopt hunting and fishing as the primary source of food. However, this is not suggested in the long run. Off late, it has been found that the Polar Regions are rich in a variety of minerals, including energy sources such as oil and natural gas. Therefore, the countries are engaged in claiming territorial rights over the Polar Regions.
Other regions that are extremely cold include the Himalayas. For some Himalayan countries, extreme weather is a way of life. For people living in Nepal and Tibet, extreme weather conditions have become a daily affair to battle with. They have become accustomed to the hostile weather conditions in the Himalayan region. However, people from other region find the going tough in the upper hilly region or in the tundra region. There have been instances of people dying due to over exposure to cold weather condition.
Just like the tundra region, dry deserts can be extremely chilly during nights. The desert poses a very harsh condition during the day. During nights, the deserts can be equally cold. Though the temperature does not reach sub zero level, it can be extremely painful to sleep under such conditions. Therefore, people light fire to keep themselves warm irrespective of the geographical terrain on which they are. World over people are trying to overcome the problem of cold weather conditions.