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From bizarre items banned on the icy continent to the mysterious reasons meteors keep striking, Antarctica hides secrets beneath its frozen surface. These strange discoveries continue to intrigue scientists and challenge our understanding of the world's southernmost frontier.
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00:00look at those lush coniferous forests and tundra what a wonderland you may have mistakenly thought
00:06it's canada but it's not it's antarctica about 34 million years ago so what makes antarctica this
00:14frigid today it turns out a mix of dropping carbon dioxide levels and some tectonic shuffle
00:20played a huge role in transforming this ice-free paradise into the frozen continent we know now
00:26about 50 million years ago co2 concentrations were sky high strutting around at around 1 000 to 2 000
00:34parts per million but as those levels tumbled down global temps started to drop paving the way for the
00:41mighty ice sheets that later took over antarctica while the co2 dive was happening tectonic activity
00:47was also working its magic the big split between south america and antarctica opened up the drake
00:54passage which created the antarctic circumpolar current this powerful current acted like a
01:00bouncer keeping warm air and ocean currents from crashing the antarctic party and helping keep
01:06things rather frosty if you mix up australia and antarctica you're not that wrong these two continents
01:13used to be one if you mix up austria and australia it's much worse by the way don't fall for
01:20the
01:20internet myths and memes there's no help desk in austria specifically for people who intended to fly
01:25to australia now look at this magnificent australian pink beach it's precious and not in a figurative
01:34sense those mysterious pinkish sands are actually garnet and it's widely used in jewelry geologists
01:41studied those sands and came to the conclusion that the garnet contained there is older than local
01:46mountains that doesn't make sense right in fact it does you see australia didn't used to be this very
01:55detached continent as it is now many many millions of years ago australia and antarctica were part of
02:01the supercontinent gondwana and glacial erosion released the garnet which eventually made its way to
02:07the beach these sands formed when south australia was flat and chill long before the mountains appeared
02:15most garnet gets washed away but this batch has a rich history tracing back to glacial rocks in the
02:21trans-antarctic mountains so this pink sand comes from an ancient mountain range hidden under antarctic
02:28ice not only does antarctica ice hide gems like garnet if you look harder you might find entire buildings
02:37sounds insane but this is exactly what a british explorer did his name is chris brown and he uncovered
02:45an entire building beneath the ice he was traveling to the pool of inaccessibility and it all started
02:53with a bummer chris and his son had their plane broken suddenly they spotted a lone bust peeking out of
03:00the snow this place was an old meteorological station despite freezing conditions chris and his son micah
03:08had a blast exploring chris is on a mission to conquer all seven earthbound poles of inaccessibility
03:14and has tackled five so far i guess you already know that antarctica is the largest desert on earth
03:22much larger than the sahara or the gobi still despite being the driest continent on earth it boasts a
03:29seriously weird waterfall nestled in the mesmerizing mcmurdo dry valleys it's five stories tall and looks like
03:37it's gushing blood it's even called blood falls it may look outlandish and even frightening but its nature
03:44can be easily explained when the iron rich water trickles through a crack in the glacier and meets
03:50the air it rusts up turning dark red you may have mistakenly heard that no bug species belongs to antarctica
03:59but it's not exactly true because there's this tiny antarctic midge living there plus there are some
04:05spiders too those aren't your average spiders hanging out in the darkest corners of your apartment
04:12those are critters lurking in the chilly darkness of the antarctic ocean floor these little marine
04:18creepers are actually anthropods and can stretch around 20 inches across as if that wasn't bizarre
04:24enough they also breathe through little holes in their legs quick question what's the color that you
04:31associate most with antarctica i'm sure it's white that's my association too however antarctica may
04:39look like a slice of watermelon that colorful snow comes courtesy of a tough little algae called
04:45chlamydomonas nivalis when things start to warm up during the antarctic summer these little guys
04:51release their vibrant red and green spores painting the snow in wild and funky colors but it's best to
04:58steer clear because that snow is not just a pretty sight it's also toxic and definitely not edible
05:06searching for fossils is always a blast but when you're in one of the most remote spots on the planet
05:11it gets even more exciting a diverse team of scientists recently hit the mother load pulling
05:18in over a ton of fossils from ancient marine life dinosaurs and birds from the late cretaceous period
05:24about 71 million years ago their adventure kicked off with a flight to south america followed by a
05:32five-day trek through the infamous drake passage upon reaching antarctica they set up camp using
05:38helicopters and inflatable boats you might be thinking why dig in antarctica with all that ice
05:46well it turns out there are places where rocks pop up depending on the season the team went to james
05:52ross island located in the antarctic peninsula and they went there during february and march and that's
05:58one of the few parts of antarctica where in summer rocks are exposed and those rocks can come from the
06:04age
06:04of dinosaurs the expedition was a success as they discovered over a ton of remarkable finds next up the
06:14fossils will head to chile before making their way to pittsburgh's carnegie museum of natural history
06:21among their discoveries they found relics dating back about 71 million years alongside some around 67
06:28million years old including plenty of snails clams and various marine creatures yikes look at this creepy
06:38sea worm it could live in l.a and be a star in a horror movie but it chooses to
06:43call the chilly waters of
06:44the southern ocean near antarctica it's home these worms can grow up to eight inches long and four
06:51inches wide but don't let their spooky exterior trick you research suggests they might actually be
06:58superheroes in disguise playing a vital role in keeping ecosystems buzzing now see that head it's not really
07:08a head it's just a retractable throat that helps this toothy creature chow down on its meals antarctica
07:15has many creepy critters to offer let me introduce you to the antarctic strawberry feather star it's not
07:22like patrick from spongebob though it's more like a deep sea creature straight out of a horror movie picture
07:28this 20 wiggly arms some stretching up to eight inches all decked out with these bizarre little bumps
07:36yikes indeed back in 2014 scientists buried 34 seismic monitors in the snow on the ross ice shelf
07:44which is huge think of it as an ice lab the size of texas just chilling over the southern ocean
07:51these clever little machines picked up a nearly non-stop buzzing even though our human ears
07:57usually can't catch these low frequency sounds scientists have worked their magic and made them
08:02audible for us they even shared the creepy audio online a glaciologist from the university of chicago
08:11says that if you could hear this vibration it sounded like a swarm of cicadas taking over the backyard
08:16in late summer but these glacier explorers weren't trying to capture spooky tunes they're actually on
08:23a mission to monitor the ross ice shelf because things are heating up literally and the ice is
08:29melting faster than ice cream on a hot day ice shelves are like earth safety plugs keeping all that
08:35massive ice from surging into the ocean so what exactly is making all that noise it's likely just strong
08:42winds whipping across ice dunes creating a kind of natural vibration there are almost 200 countries in
08:53the world and each has a bunch of laws that citizens should follow some of them might be pretty strange
08:59sometimes for example in some places in greece it's prohibited to wear heels meanwhile in samoa it's
09:10illegal to forget your wife's birthday but what if i told you there's a place on earth with absolutely
09:18no laws and it's not a country but an entire continent welcome to antarctica at least that's
09:26what i'll tell you if you manage to scrape together your savings and shell out at least eight grand to
09:31travel to the south pole technically speaking there are no laws here just like i mentioned before
09:38since it isn't a country it can't have any laws the situation there isn't too different from being
09:45out in international waters if there were laws governing antarctica that would imply it's a
09:51sovereign territory ruled by some government or governments sorry to burst the bubble for all the
09:57power hungry folks but this continent isn't up for grabs seven countries namely great britain new
10:04zealand france chile norway australia and argentina have territorial claims on it and there are actually
10:12people living there right now so how do things get done in antarctica its status is like a no-man's
10:21land
10:22and world powers plan to keep it that way in reality the international scientific community governs antarctica
10:29since they're the ones working and operating on the continent however this cooperation likely
10:36wouldn't have been possible without the antarctic treaty of 1959 which laid the groundwork for how
10:42everything functions today to be honest this treaty isn't something that can pique your interest
10:49it basically states that antarctica should remain neutral and includes some basic information
10:54about its territorial status that's all there's really nothing useful for the average traveler
11:00like you and me when in rome do as the romans do right before going somewhere it's cool to know
11:07specific things about your destination like that in singapore chewing gum can get you in serious trouble
11:14or that in tajikistan grown men aren't really advised to wear shorts in public
11:21so imagine you found that money bought the heaviest jacket you could find and finally ventured into
11:28this land what do you need to know and what should you absolutely avoid doing there it all starts with
11:35how you pack your bags one big tip for anyone visiting this continent is to adhere to the don't pack
11:42a pest
11:42rule you must follow strict procedures to avoid introducing non-native species into the environment
11:49most of these non-natives are plant species around 121 including fungi but some folks have managed to
11:56introduce 72 invertebrates eight mammals and three bird species there are even worms in antarctica now
12:05actually every time a new species comes to antarctica it has all the chances to become an invasive
12:11species in case they survive the frigid temperatures invasive species often flourish in new environments
12:19because they lack natural predators take the brown tree snake for example these snakes were accidentally
12:26brought to guam in the late 40s or early 50s with no local predators and plenty of birds and rodents
12:33to
12:33munch on their numbers skyrocketed they even caused the extinction of 9 out of 11 forest bird species on the
12:40island it's clear that the negative reputation of invasive species is well deserved for both
12:46animals and plants so to ensure the list of plants in antarctica doesn't grow there are strict hygiene rules
12:55in place everything you bring must be washed decontaminated and inspected daily for example all the velcros
13:04you've got they're prime hiding spots for plants and they'll even give you a quick vacuum just to make sure
13:09you're not sneaking in any seeds once you're there be prepared for things to get a bit dirty
13:16you can't take an actual shower in antarctica it doesn't matter if you're visiting for one day or 50
13:22you just can't do it there's no running water so say hello to wet wipes and bid farewell to flushing
13:29toilets too
13:30all in all going number two isn't the best experience imagine you lower your pants while
13:36bundled up in a few down jackets and settle onto a bucket no ceramic throne for you here enjoy your
13:43potty and get throwbacks to the times when you were a toddler inside that bucket there's a plastic bag
13:49tucked within another once the inner bag is filled with solid waste and toilet paper you seal it up tight
13:56with a couple of cable ties then wrap the outer bag around it and secure it in the same way
14:01after
14:02that the bucket is covered with a plastic lid and shipped off to new zealand for proper disposal
14:08why new zealand i don't know i know you're curious since i only touched upon number two
14:15number one rule collect your waste in 20 liter barrels unlike your more serious discharge this barrel
14:22won't be shipped to new zealand as it can be treated right there at the base once you're done make
14:28sure to wash your hands huh gotcha you can't do that you princess just hit the hand sanitizer to clean
14:35your hands now if you want a drink please do not eat the snow first off it's very much protected
14:44there
14:45second it will only make your thirst situation worse rumor has it if you eat snow to quench your thirst
14:50you can get dehydrated but it's more of a myth but the risk of hypothermia is very real so if
14:57you want
14:58to have a cup of tea and you need some water you'll have to boil some ice don't worry it's
15:03not expired
15:04just because it's millions of years old the boiling will do the trick by the way nothing goes bad there
15:10so you don't even need a fridge to keep food fresh the researchers living there store their food outside
15:16because in their camps there are no bugs speaking of antarctic wildlife it might be tough for you as
15:24a tourist to spot any creatures in the wild but even if you do please resist the urge to feed
15:30them
15:31it's a big no-no to feed touch or handle birds or seals and don't approach or photograph them in
15:37a way
15:38that disrupts their behavior plus their stomachs might not appreciate what you have to offer
15:44another thing you have to be super cautious about is like it when people picture antarctica they usually
15:52envision endless snow with an occasional peak of black rock underneath but believe it or not plants do
15:59grow there various types of grass moss and lichen since these plants take a long time to grow especially
16:09with six months of total darkness and temperatures that can plunge negative four degrees fahrenheit
16:14even in summer be mindful of where you walk stick to the snow and don't step on the lichen as
16:22it's vital
16:22to antarctica's ecosystem also don't leave things on the ground there's a rule against this to prevent
16:31disturbing local biodiversity snow is just as protected as lichen you can't pick it up or make snow angels
16:39so basically you've got to preserve this precious white stuff and no throwing snowballs either
16:46there's a tiny loophole in the law though there are specific small areas where you're allowed to hang out
16:52you can break the rules if there are no penguin colonies within 12 miles
16:57at a place called portal point technically when you're there you're in the uk portal point is a
17:04narrow spot in the northeast part of recluse peninsula on the west coast of gramland when it comes to the
17:12delicate balance of antarctica leave stones alone too remember the butterfly effect even a small action
17:19can set off a chain reaction everyone loves a souvenir but if everyone takes a rock there will be none
17:25left
17:26so just a heads up taking anything rocks feathers bones or even soil is a big no-no and if
17:35you spot
17:35something human made hands off it could be scientific gear if you find something cool like a fossil just
17:42take a pic and make a note of where you found it scientists will appreciate it way more than you
17:48will
17:48plus you'll get an awesome shot it's a win-win hey look at this rock at first sight it looks
17:56like a
17:56regular boring rock the likes of which you can see when walking along the beach its color doesn't stand
18:02out and its weight is pretty regular around four pounds but everything changes when you learn that
18:08this rock was born on mars traveled all the way to earth and ended up in antarctica ah now the
18:15story
18:15sounds much more fascinating so let's find out the details researcher roberta score who worked on the
18:21ansmet project which stands for antarctic search for meteorites of the denver antarctic program found
18:28this meteorite in 1984. if you want to decipher the name of the space traveler i can help you it
18:34comes
18:34from the place where the scientists spotted it the allen hills of antarctica hence alh and then we've got
18:42the year of the discovery and the number of the sample if you think that roberta picked up the rock
18:46and exclaimed something like woohoo i'm holding a chunk of bars i'll have to disappoint you at the
18:52very beginning it was totally unclear where the meteorite came from and one thing confused researchers
18:58even more the meteor was very different from other meteorite groups found on our planet okay but then
19:05how did they finally figure out it was a visitor from mars all thanks to traces of gas
19:11similar to those that make up the atmosphere of the red planet we learned about its composition
19:15thanks to the brave viking lander that carried out the necessary analysis in situ in 1976. anyway
19:23back to our rocky discovery it's actually very special and not only because the rock arrived from
19:29far far away among those several thousand meteorites found on earth just around a hundred have likely come
19:36from mars and even so our guy is different from them and seems to be part of a separate group
19:42so let's go into the past and follow the life story of this cosmic traveler it most likely formed
19:48around four billion years ago on its home red planet one day which wasn't very different from others
19:54turned out to be life-changing for this peaceful rock a meteorite impact catapulted into space and it
20:01started its own journey as a small asteroid at that time it was way larger than at the moment of
20:07discovery on earth at one point alh got close to earth and who knows probably decided to explore
20:14something that's how 13 000 years ago it ended its space journey by colliding with our planet at the
20:22moment this martian fragment is the oldest we've got but at first it wasn't all that popular only in 1996
20:29did it become way more famous after a groundbreaking discovery you see some nasa researchers started
20:35wondering well the fragment is obviously very old but then could it have recorded any traces of life
20:42that could have been thriving on mars at the time alh formed on the red planet and guess what those
20:49scientists turned out to be right they detected traces of very fine magnetite particles those were
20:57completely similar in structure and chemical composition to the particles we have on earth
21:01they're called magneto fossils and magnetotactic bacteria produced them so it might mean that at
21:09one point there were some forms of life on mars in april 2020 scientists from the japanese space agency
21:16made another discovery they detected nitrogen containing organic material of martian origin in our meteorite so
21:23who knows what new astounding secrets further examination of the meteorite might reveal at the
21:30moment though all you can do is travel to antarctica and find more of them the thing is this place
21:36is great
21:37for meteorite hunting
21:40surprisingly we have found nearly 50 000 meteorites in antarctica and hundreds of thousands are still
21:47waiting to be discovered each of these space rocks can tell us a story of the evolution of the solar
21:52system
21:53for example the very first lunar rock found on the icy deserted continent prove that chunks of space
21:59objects larger than asteroids can also end up on earth so let's say you got inspired and decided to go
22:06meteorite hunting all the way to antarctica well get ready for some serious challenges despite their
22:12potential abundance finding space rocks isn't as easy as it might seem you'll have to visit remote areas
22:19and there's still no guarantee that you'll be able to spot a meteorite and that's actually a huge
22:24problem meteorites are vanishing from sight
22:30currently scientists find about a thousand meteorites in antarctica each year but according
22:36to a new study about 5 000 more get hidden out of sight every year the culprit is warming temperatures
22:43worried scientists created a model that could help them figure out where those meteorites might surface
22:48this model was quite complicated taking into consideration snow cover surface temperature
22:54the speed at which ice flows and even the steepness of the terrain after that they ran simulations under
23:01various warming scenarios it turned out that meteorites indeed sank out of sight as temperatures rose
23:07to say that the researchers were upset is obvious they didn't expect that climate change would affect
23:13their work so much even though those areas are below freezing people still managed to ruin a crucial
23:19archive of the solar system but let's get back to your meteorite hunt if you want your chances to
23:26find one to be higher travel to the base of mountains or outcrops where ice which usually flows to the
23:33lower
23:33ground is forced to move upward but make sure to take your windbreaker with you in those places
23:38powerful winds brush away snow exposing bright vivid blue ice instead of melting this ancient ice can
23:46change directly into water vapor and it helps expose meteorites that would otherwise remain hidden
23:51you need to hurry though meteorites at the surface disappear quickly even when temperatures are well below
23:58freezing the rocks can still absorb some of the sun's heat and melt the ice it's like they're creating underground
24:04or shall i say under ice tunnels for themselves sinking and hiding from sight sometime later
24:11re-freezing closes the entrance to those tunnels effectively trapping meteorites inside tucked out of sight
24:20now scientists admit it's very tricky to find working methods to spot meteorites and if we don't hurry and
24:26develop such methods we might lose between 80 000 and 250 000 space rocks in total no wonder scientists are
24:34on a mission to find more meteorites they're focusing on meteorite stranding zones those are places where
24:40meteorites often gather on the surface because of specific features of geology ice flow and climate
24:46conditions as you already know you can find meteorites on blue ice without snow cover this makes meteorites
24:53easy to spot but finding such hot spots is often pure luck or you gotta sit day and night scouring
25:01maps
25:01and satellite images in attempts to spot blue ice zones near research stations
25:07let me introduce veronica tolenov a glaciologist and her team they've taken things to the next level
25:14by developing a smart antarctic wide map to do it they've used machine learning and satellite data from
25:20nasa the canadian space agency and others this map highlights areas where meteorites might be hiding
25:27based on past finds and all kinds of climate and ice data apparently the best places to find meteorites
25:34are along the edges of the continent and near mountains with blue ice unfortunately it's not
25:40just the blue ice that matters the temperature and speed of the ice flow are also super important
25:46for example if the ice flows too quickly meteorites get swept away before they can accumulate so if
25:53you want to find a meteorite you have to wait for very precise conditions the surface temperature has
25:58to stay below 16 degrees fahrenheit almost all the time otherwise meteorites sink you can start with
26:06the allen hills region yup that's where our alh friend was discovered this area is kind of a meteorite gold
26:13mine with more than a thousand finds but there are even more promising places like the thimble hymen
26:19mountains and no one has searched there yet you might be the first in any case with this new map
26:26researchers developed a where to go index that ranks the best meteorite hunting spots making future
26:32field trips much more targeted and with plenty of blue ice regions still unexplored there are tons of
26:39meteorites just waiting to be found so what are you waiting for
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