Outer Space Is Closer Than Antarctica: And Other Things I Learned While Falling in Love at the Bottom of the World

by Michelle Ott

This beautifully illustrated memoir tells artist Michelle Ott’s true story of falling in love and discovering her place in the universe on a remote research station in Antarctica.

In 2004, feeling burned out and dissatisfied, Michelle Ott left her high-profile gallery job in New York to work as a janitor at McMurdo Station in Antarctica: the coldest, windiest, driest place on Earth. There, she fell in love—not only with her future partner, but with the raw, inhospitable, incomparable beauty of the continent itself.

She took trips to nowhere on the Antarctic ice and mapped out the most romantic date locations on a remote research base where the sun never sets.

She witnessed the bright green aurora australis at -30°F, cried in response to its beauty, and found her eyes frozen shut by her tears.

She learned about (literally) breathtaking katabatic winds, ventifacts, and what it was like to bake cookies for 1000.

She dropped a piece of glacier ice into a glass of booze and consumed the ancient air bubbles that were trapped within it.

In this emotional blend of art, science, and deeply personal stories, Ott shares the wisdom and wonder gleaned from her four trips to the southernmost continent. Complete with hand-drawn maps and diagrams, accessible scientific explanations, and the realizations that can only come from turning your life upside down, Outer Space Is Closer Than Antarctica is an ode to explorers and dreamers, scientists and artists, and anyone curious enough to brave the unknown.

FOR THE EXPLORER AND THE DREAMER: Who hasn't fantasized about quitting their job, leaving city life behind, and running away to the wilderness? We might not all choose Antarctica as our dream destination, but Michelle Ott's brave, open-hearted approach to life still speaks to that nagging impulse to flip your world upside down. Her story of finding friendship, love, and an appreciation for life's simplest joys reminds us that sometimes that impulse is worth acting on.

ART + SCIENCE: This well-researched memoir presents scientific principles and research in an engaging combination of art and prose. Learn about volcanoes, stardust, Katabatic winds, the polar vortex, ventifacts, glaciers, and other Antarctic phenomena through Ott’s illustrations, maps, diagrams, and descriptions.

THE WONDER OF ANTARCTICA: Antarctica is a place of superlatives—driest, highest, coldest, windiest, biggest—and extremes. Its closest continental neighbor is 774 miles away. The Kármán line, the boundary between Earth’s atmosphere and outer space, is only 62 miles above sea level. When you are standing on any other landmass on Earth, you are nearer to outer space than to Antarctica. Science enthusiasts, creative thinkers, and armchair travelers will all find something to relish in this remarkable volume.

Perfect for:
- Lovers of illustrated nonfiction and memoirs
- Anyone who’s ever daydreamed about moving away from the city and starting fresh
- Designers, artists, visual thinkers, and other creatives
- Adults and teens who are curious about geology, geography, and earth sciences
- Scientists, researchers, and environmentalists
- Fans of introspective nature writing and authors like Katherine May and Helen Macdonald
- Romantics and readers who enjoy unconventional love stories

Genres: Memoir, Nonfiction, Graphic Novels, Travel, Biography, Comics, Biography Memoir

166 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 23, 2025

Reviews

[Liralen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Antarctica is a place of superlatives, writes Ott again and again. The biggest and the coldest and the iciest and so it goes. She made several months-long trips to the ice when she was younger, working janitorial and kitchen jobs not because those jobs were where her passions lay but because they let her, well, go to Antarctica.

This is something of a hybrid book: a memoir, but with perhaps a quarter or a third of the pages given over to illustrations. I can't really evaluate the illustrations, as I don't think they rendered properly in the advance copy that I read (leaving the black and white illustrations more or less intact but the more colorful ones with huge gaps), so I'm giving the book the benefit of the doubt and assuming that they'll make more sense in the final product.

The writing fell rather flat for me. I've been curious about Antarctica, and books about Antarctica, for years—since I was eleven or so, I think, sitting in the backseat of the car on a road trip while my mother read Anne Fadiman's Ex Libris aloud to us. Then there was Jerri Nielsen's Ice Bound, which, my gosh, I must reread... In the early days of blogging, I remember following someone who was working a similarly unglamorous job to Ott's first jobs in Antarctica and writing about it, and even now I sometimes think that maybe it's not too late; maybe I could uproot my life for a year and be a janitor at the bottom of the world.

This kind of floats from topic to topic, though, unstructured (or: there is a structure, but not one that made for a linear story) and without a lot of strong feeling. (I'm sure the emotion was there in the writing, but it didn't translate to me as a reader.) And I always want the hard facts, the specific stories: what a day looked like, what a week looked like, what the dorm rooms looked like, what it felt like dressing to go outside in Antarctica, more people and personalities. I'm also not quite sure what to make of the "outer space" part of things, either; as Ott notes, most places are farther away than outer space, and when I realized that some of the satisfaction of a good title was lost.

So...rated solely on the written portion, a low three stars for me. Will presumably be improved with the published versions of the drawings within. Did make me dream anew about Antarctica, though.

Thanks to the author and publisher for providing a review copy through NetGalley.

[Alexandria ☾ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley for the arc! If this wasn't an arc, I probably would have dnfed. I was aware this was a memoir, but I expected more information about Antarctica and adventures there and less about the author's relationships, friends, coworkers, jobs and uninteresting anecdotes. The (in my opinion) pointless illustrations are also very minimalist, usually one or two colors with big words spread out over the page. Not quite what I was looking for, illustration or content wise. I did like learning about the slang and terms used in Antarctica though, even if it was from over twenty years ago.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks so much to NetGalley for the free Kindle book. My review is voluntarily given, and my opinions are my own.

I'm not the biggest fan of memoirs, but I really loved this one. Picked it up more to see the maps and learn some new facts about Antarctica, but I loved every part of it.

The illustrations are amazing and would definitely recommend!

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a charming blend of memoir, science, and whimsical illustrations by an artist/photographer who spent four stints working in Antarctica washing dishes, keeping track of provisions, and making round cookies (approximately 24,000 in five months!). The morale-boosting effects of round cookies (as opposed to bar cookies made in a sheet pan) were mentioned on five separate occasions in this short volume, but after discovering how many Ott made while in Antarctica, I can see why she might be obsessed with this fact.

The memoir wasn’t written in chronological order but skipped around according to theme as Ott connected her personal stories to scientific themes. I think this worked well for this particular subject matter. Ott is adept at breaking down complex scientific facts into easily digestible illustrations. My only quibble with this book is that I would have liked more illustrations (and there well may be more in the published version since this was an ARC and there were definitely several pages that felt incomplete illustration-wise).

This was a quick, fun read and I even managed to learn a thing or two about weather, geology, topography, and space.

**Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for giving me the opportunity to review this as an ARC.**

[Richard Derus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Real Rating: 4.5* of five

The Publisher Says: This beautifully illustrated memoir tells artist Michelle Ott’s true story of falling in love and discovering her place in the universe on a remote research station in Antarctica.

In 2004, feeling burned out and dissatisfied, Michelle Ott left her high-profile gallery job in New York to work as a janitor at McMurdo Station in Antarctica: the coldest, windiest, driest place on Earth. There, she fell in love—not only with her future partner, but with the raw, inhospitable, incomparable beauty of the continent itself.

She took trips to nowhere on the Antarctic ice and mapped out the most romantic date locations on a remote research base where the sun never sets.
She witnessed the bright green aurora australis at -30°F, cried in response to its beauty, and found her eyes frozen shut by her tears.
She learned about (literally) breathtaking katabatic winds, ventifacts, and what it was like to bake cookies for 1000.
She dropped a piece of glacier ice into a glass of booze and consumed the ancient air bubbles that were trapped within it.

In this emotional blend of art, science, and deeply personal stories, Ott shares the wisdom and wonder gleaned from her four trips to the southernmost continent. Complete with hand-drawn maps and diagrams, accessible scientific explanations, and the realizations that can only come from turning your life upside down, Outer Space Is Closer Than Antarctica is an ode to explorers and dreamers, scientists and artists, and anyone curious enough to brave the unknown.

FOR THE EXPLORER AND THE DREAMER: Who hasn't fantasized about quitting their job, leaving city life behind, and running away to the wilderness? We might not all choose Antarctica as our dream destination, but Michelle Ott's brave, open-hearted approach to life still speaks to that nagging impulse to flip your world upside down. Her story of finding friendship, love, and an appreciation for life's simplest joys reminds us that sometimes that impulse is worth acting on.

ART + SCIENCE: This well-researched memoir presents scientific principles and research in an engaging combination of art and prose. Learn about volcanoes, stardust, Katabatic winds, the polar vortex, ventifacts, glaciers, and other Antarctic phenomena through Ott’s illustrations, maps, diagrams, and descriptions.

THE WONDER OF ANTARCTICA: Antarctica is a place of superlatives—driest, highest, coldest, windiest, biggest—and extremes. Its closest continental neighbor is 774 miles away. The Kármán line, the boundary between Earth’s atmosphere and outer space, is only 62 miles above sea level. When you are standing on any other landmass on Earth, you are nearer to outer space than to Antarctica. Science enthusiasts, creative thinkers, and armchair travelers will all find something to relish in this remarkable volume.

Perfect for:

Fans of illustrated nonfiction and memoirs
Anyone who’s ever daydreamed about moving away from the city and starting fresh
Designers, artists, visual thinkers, and other creatives
Adults and teens who are curious about geology, geography, and earth sciences
Scientists, researchers, and environmentalists
Fans of introspective nature writing and authors like Katherine May and Helen Macdonald
Romantics and readers who enjoy unconventional love stories


I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA EDELWEISS+. THANK YOU.

My Review: I felt curiously removed from this memoir; because it is very much a vibes book about a very rigidly regimented world, it came across as curiously...out of phase for me.


Author Ott is not a scientist, so of course she isn't going to talk about the science she's been doing. She's there because she's fascinated by Antarctica, as who isn't. (If you're not, whyever not?) It is the most extreme place on the planet, moreso than the Arctic. Colder, icier, all the superlatives there are for weird and cold and Other. Sounds great to me.

It sounded great to Author Ott, too. Off she went to have an adventure, to reassess her life, to shake things up. It worked...she met her partner there, she got to introspect in a way not really possible in the midst of life as we live it. Along the way she became a real professional at cookie-baking, becoming slightly overaware (at least for my taste) of how important round cookies are as morale boosters...bar shaped tray bakes are not as...personal...apparently. I've never been as isolated, as regimented (like being imprisoned) as she has in Antarctica.


It's just an incredible place...it drew her back four times over the years, and her vibes-based narrative really accentuates why. I don't always like reading memoirs of people's experiences that center their private world over their surroundings, but felt the balance was struck well in this book.


The balancing of desires versus requirements as shown above is something I feel provides the very best clue to this book's ideal giftee: A young person, obviously most important for a young woman, who is about to launch a course of study leading to a career, launch the career itself, or who is stuck in unfulfilling circumstances. Many of us are, at all stages of life; the book ill work its encouraging magic on all ages. I think it will offer a lot to a younger person who's not sure about a STEM career.



It's clear that no one who fancies extreme experiences should pass this experiential memoir by. I think your experience of the art will be superior in a tree book format, though the ebook is by no means a poor choice...if you have a good tablet to read it on.

The way of the world *can* give you what you need. It's a lovely and powerful message. It all comes down to taking action, taking responsibility, accepting risk...all those things that an extreme environment like Antarctica requires of you. Since most of us can't emulate her geographical journey, reading about it and learning from the act of reading is a good second-best lesson.

[Molly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outer Space is Closer than Antarctica caught my eye with its wild title—I assumed it would be some kind of humorous book. But it turns out the statement is true! And it’s just one of many fascinating things you’ll learn by reading this book.

The author, who has an art degree, went to Antarctica as a young woman almost on a whim. While there, she learned a lot about the continent—and about life itself. Not in the sense of simply growing older, but through her creative perspective, drawing parallels between her experiences in Antarctica, experiences you can have almost nowhere else, and those of everyday life.

Her illustrations are delightful, and I loved that aspect of the book. It’s a science-based memoir, but she’s not a scientist, which gives her observations a fresh and unusual perspective. I particularly enjoyed learning about the support staff at research stations, not just the scientists. Now, whenever I watch a movie or TV show set in Antarctica—or even the Arctic—I’ll remember there���s a whole other world behind the scenes.

This is a quick, engaging read with plenty of illustrations, and I highly recommend it. If you’ve ever wondered what life is like at the bottom of the world, this book is a perfect introduction.

[Elisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book has a lot of fascinating information about Antarctica. Unfortunately, it’s disorganized and buried amongst other information that I wasn’t too interested in. The author’s account about her “trip to nowhere,” how disconcerting it is to have perpetual sunlight or darkness, what they wear, how they get there and other accounts of daily life at McMurdo was great, but it was disorganized and hard to follow. I was super-interested in the information, so it didn’t’ matter much. My real problem was how much of the content is about the author’s personal life. I’m aware that this is how memoirs work but this is not a genre I enjoy, and I hoped that the information about Antarctica would offset the rest of the personal details. The illustrations were fun, but they’re not the same as photographs. Ott mentions how she took her camera, and those pictures would have been amazing. So, this read was entertaining but a little disappointing if you want to learn about the coldest continent. Memoir readers might enjoy it more. It was not for me.
I chose to read this book and all opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased. Thank you, NetGalley/Chronicle Books.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Did you know that it only snows less than two inches a year in Antarctica? When they say it takes millions of years to turn into ice there, that is crazy. I used to live in Alaska and imagined similar conditions for both places. How dry Antarctica is literally takes your breath away.
This book is a wonderful memoir and scientific explanation for Antarctic factoids in one. It looks at a time span of years where the author worked several jobs at McMurdo station in Antarctica. Musing about things she learned about science and herself while working there.
The art is fun and the simplicity of it to go alongside the stories or vignettes told is charming. I loved the graphic depictions of snow and ice throughout.
I think my only concern was the flow of the book, it jumps timelines and from subject to subject quite quickly.
A fun read and definitely one I will bring up if someone mentions visiting or working on Antarctica.

[Christie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Outer Space is Closer Than Antarctica by Michelle Ott is a look at one woman’s journey on a quest for personal peace. Working in a high stress environment, Ott decided to spend a season working at McMurdo Station in Antarctica. She starts in the janitorial group but works her way up, a couple of seasons later, to baking, making round cookies for the staff because round makes them feel more homey than bar cookies. Ott is an artist and reflects on her personal life and work life with drawings of scientific things that occur in Antarctica. Not only is it a personal story but also a science lesson, as well.

[Carmen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an early copy of this book.

I really liked that the goal of the book was to link scientific research done in Antarctica to the author's stories, so it personalizes science so others will care about it.

I really liked the illustrations and wish there had been more. (I now realize that a few of the illustrations may have been missing from my copy since there were random blank pages.) Because of the illustrations, I would recommend a hard copy over an ebook.

Overall, it was a quick read, I enjoyed it, and learned some really cool things.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was really great, but I'm struggling to sum it up. Let me start with what didn't work: maybe it was just the eARC, or maybe it was intentional, but the illustrations were either missing or were (intentionally?) mostly or all white. It seems more likely that they were just missing from the eARC, which seems a weird decision or oversight for something that's described as an "illustrated memoir" and tagged as a GN in goodreads. I thought this would lean more toward GN, but the (spaces for) illustrations were few and far between-- the GR tag for GN is very generous at best, but mostly inaccurate.

I usually really dislike general nonfiction that centers the author's exploration or journey as the primary way to organize or tell the story. This is the excellent exception that proves the rule-- the author does a fantastic job of using her experiences, musings, and feelings as a bridge to scientific, geological, or meteorological concepts. The writing is surprisingly beautiful and the pacing is well-matched to the content.

Suggest to readers who like nonfiction about science and travel. Partner with South Pole Station.

eARC from NetGalley.

[Merkie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed Outer Space is Closer than Antarctica. This was a fun short read that included illustrations that I loved. Some of my favorite parts throughout where were the author would take specific Antarctic elements or science elements and parallel or relate them to her life experiences. I loved learning things about Antarctica that I didn't know.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

[Ula Tardigrade · Rating 3 out of 5]

A strange but charming little book. I agree with some other reviewers that the memoir part can be a little chaotic and hard to follow, nevertheless the bits of (firsthand) information about Antarctica and beautiful drawings were fun to browse through. So if you, like me, are interested in polar regions and science, and are a fan of graphic novels, it may be well worth checking out.

Thanks to the publisher, Chronicle Books, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book.

[Jax · Rating 2 out of 5]

It’s brave to write any book, much less a personal memoir. Taking this step is applauded. The fact that a person with her professional background took at job as a janitor in Antarctica makes a compelling pitch. It’s unfortunate that the execution didn’t live up to the potential of this book.

Thank you to Chronicle Books and NetGalley for providing this eARC.

[Lys · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you to the author and to Goodreads Giveaways for my copy!

If it was longer I probably would have dnf-ed. This was definitely different from the classic memoir format, which initially seemed really cool. However, I don’t think it was executed in the most seamless way. Would have loved to see actual photos in addition to the illustrations as well. Love the cover though!

[Elyssa · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s really a 3.5 but it opened my eyes to new ways of thinking about ice and wind and the atmosphere in Antarctica so giving a generous 4. Would’ve loved even more details about being there and the other people I think.

[Cait's Reading Nook · Rating 4 out of 5]

Did you know that it is 62 miles from the Earth’s surface to the boundary between our atmosphere and outer space while traveling to Antarctica can take almost thousands of miles?

Outer Space is Closer Than Antarctica by Michelle Ott blends both art and science in a memoir about Michelle’s time in research trips in Antarctica and her relationships both times of falling in love and times of break-up

I enjoyed reading Michelle’s story as well as learning more about Antarctica! The book describes Antarctica as a place of superlatives: biggest, iciest, least populated, highest, most remote, windiest, coldest, driest. A quote I found to be profound is “The wind shapes the landscape because there is nothing in the way.”

The title of the book and a theme woven throughout the book is perspective and proximity. The title makes us think about our proximity between Earth and Space as well as the challenges of travel to Antarctica. The book showcases the natural wonder and awe of Antarctica.

Antarctica has been on my travel list, and I found this book very fascinating about Antarctica, the climate, landscape and the species that call Antarctica home.

Thank you to Michelle Ott, NetGalley, and Chronicle Books for the opportunity to read and review this Advanced Reader Copy.

I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a honest review.